NYC 'at our breaking point' as Adams asks state for migrant crisis assistance
NEW YORK - Mayor Eric Adams says that New York City is "at our breaking point" as record numbers of migrants continue to arrive.
Adams submitted an emergency mutual aid request to the state of New York on Friday, asking for a shelter for 500 asylum-seekers to be opened immediately.
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"Since last spring, the city has stepped up to welcome approximately 40,000 asylum seekers, providing them with shelter, food, and connections to a host of resources. We have opened 74 emergency shelters and four humanitarian relief centers at breakneck speed, and done this almost entirely on our own," Adams said in a statement. "We are at our breaking point. Based off our projections, we anticipate being unable to continue sheltering arriving asylum seekers on our own and have submitted an emergency mutual aid request to the State of New York beginning this weekend."
According to Adams, over 3,100 asylum seekers arrived in the city last week, including 835 on last Thursday alone.
"This type of request," Adams continued. "Reserved only for dire emergencies, asks the state for support to shelter arriving asylum seekers as the city faces an immediate need for additional capacity. Our initial request is for shelter to accommodate 500 asylum seekers, but, as New York City continues to see numbers balloon, this estimate will increase as well."
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Adams called the lack of federal response to the ongoing migrant crisis "inhumane" and "irresponsible" while speaking on Caribbean Power Jam Radio on Friday, also saying that the influx of asylum seekers is stretching the city's finances thin.
"The strain on our infrastructure is immense," Adams said, according to Politico. "I cannot tell you how much of an impact this is having on our abilities to provide services for everyday New Yorkers."