By Sara Higdon – The Post Millennial
Hundreds of illegal immigrants have taken to sleeping at the San Diego airport for days after being processed by border patrol agents, as they wait for their flights to leave.
According to Fox 5, immigrants have historically been known to stay overnight the day before a flight, but recently have been showing up days in advance. Local organizations report the number of people sleeping there has recently increased significantly.
One volunteer with the We All We Got aid organization, Roni Elias told the outlet that they have had to increase the number of aid packages they deliver to the airport. She said, “We would initially make just about 50 sandwiches, 50 meal packs for people. But then, we realized that was not enough.”
“Last week, I counted 308 people sleeping over,” Elais added. Our biggest concern is all the children that are there and the vulnerable populations that are sleeping there.”
Another volunteer with the organization, Krystle Johnson, told the San Diego Union-Tribune, that the airport is “almost becoming a second (migrant welcome) center because there’s so many people there.”
In a statement, the airport said, “Since late last year, San Diego International Airport has experienced a significant increase in the number of migrants using the airport to proceed to their next destination.” It continued, “We have and will continue to coordinate with migrant-serving volunteer groups and nonprofit organizations as they help their clients navigate the airport.”
In September, the Biden administration released hundreds of illegal immigrants into the border city due to overcrowding in U.S. Customs and Border Patrol facilities. Many of those released into the city utilize the airport to travel to other sanctuary cities such as Chicago and New York.
In one video, an illegal immigrant asked a Border Patrol agent if he could go to Chicago, to which the agent responded, “You can do whatever you want, you’re free.”
However, Chicago has converted a section of its O’Hare Airport into a makeshift shelter as immigrants strain the city’s infrastructure, causing backlash from citizens.
New York Mayor Eric Adams recently said that the illegal immigrant crisis will “destroy New York City,” and has taken action to deter illegal immigrants from making their way to the city.