According to St.Louis Post Dispatch
Aftershocks from the fall of Afghanistan reached St. Louis on Tuesday as officials said as many as 1,200 refugees could be arriving, and Afghans already here worried about family members still stuck on the other side of the world.
Officials at the International Institute of St. Louis confirmed they’re already seeing an uptick in arrivals from Afghanistan and expect many more to follow.
“The front wave is happening now,” said Blake Hamilton, the institute’s senior vice president of programs. “We need volunteers. We need financial support.”
St. Louis Mayor Tishaura O. Jones and St. Louis County Executive Sam Page quickly pledged their assistance, saying 1,000 would be the minimum they would take through a program for Afghans who aided the American war effort.
And in bakeries, shops and homes around St. Louis, Afghans with family still back in their home country waited desperately for updates.
Haroon Safi, who worked with American soldiers and contractors before coming over in 2014, said he calls his brothers daily to make sure they’re safe.
“I’m worried,” he said. “Everybody is worried.”
It wasn’t supposed to happen like this. As late as June, intelligence reports estimated it could take at least six months for the U.S.-backed Afghan government to collapse after American troops finished withdrawing Sept. 11. But the Taliban insurgency rolled into Kabul, the capital, seven months early this weekend, prompting a scramble to evacuate remaining U.S. officials and allies — and prepare for a major influx of refugees back home.