The 25ft mountain of lifejackets left behind by the refugees who have arrived on Lesbos

The Mail online — Piled more than 25ft high, this mass of discarded lifejackets stands as a monument to the migration crisis.

Each brightly coloured inflatable vest represents one of the 412,000 people who have arrived in Europe via Lesbos in the past six months.

Among the heap, children’s armbands and beach rings – many spattered in mud – lie as reminders of the families who have continued their journey to Athens and northwards through the Balkans.

 Each brightly coloured inflatable vest represents one of the 412,000 people who have arrived in Europe via Lesbos in the past six months

Among the heap, children’s armbands and beach rings – many spattered in mud – lie as reminders of the families who have continued their journey to Athens and northwards through the Balkans

Odd pairs of shoes, the remains of rubber dinghies, and emergency whistles are all thrown on the stack.

Nearly half the 894,500 migrants who have crossed the Mediterranean this year have passed through the small Greek island – now the springboard to Europe.

In the summer as many as 5,000 migrants were arriving every day on the island, which has a population of only 86,000.

The arrivals put a huge strain on the island’s infrastructure and on the tourist industry on which it survives. In November they refugees at the rate of 3,212 a day despite plunging temperatures.