The ghetto was enclosed with wooden fences with three gateways. Over each entrance a sign was affixed: “Danger! Epidemics!”, with a drawing of a louse and the word Judenviertel (German for: Jewish quarter) next to it. From the inside, the gates were guarded by ghetto police, and from the outside – by navy-blue policemen and German gendarmes. About 12,000 people were living in the ghetto when it was sealed off.