Yuma, AZ Mayor Declares State of Emergency over Illegal Immigrant Situation

The Mayor of the city of Yuma, Arizona, Douglas Nicholls, signed a Proclamation of Emergency in his border-area city today.

Mayor Nicholls declared a state of emergency to urge for additional federal assistance in avoiding the worsening of an already bad situation at the Arizona border with Mexico.

Mayor: Migrants being released into the community faster than they are departing, and shelters and the staff to run them are at max capacity. A state of emergency is declared.

— City of Yuma (@cityofyuma) April 16, 2019

The problem, as the Tweet above highlights, is that the illegals are being released so quickly into the area due to the sheer number of them versus the limited capacity of the detention faciltites. In many cases, detainees are released as soon as the same day! That can’t be good.

Even the shelters in the Yuma area and the non-profits that operated in the region were overwhelmed, and the whole situation put a serious strain on resources.

Mayor of Yuma Douglas Nicholls (@MayorNicholls) signed a Proclamation of Emergency in Yuma on Apr. 16, due to the high number of migrant family releases by USBP overwhelming the non-profit shelter system. View a video with his comments here: https://t.co/busj2rpP2Z pic.twitter.com/xNnQEsycKb

— City of Yuma (@cityofyuma) April 17, 2019

The City of Yuma clarified in a tweet just moments ago that the “purpose of the emergency declaration is to request resources to prevent humanitarian crisis.”

The City of Yuma is clarifying to America that, in many areas along the Southern border, there is a borderline humanitarian crisis. Something MUST be done, and done quickly.

Purpose of the emergency declaration is to request resources to prevent humanitarian crisis. Full statement: https://t.co/rEsq1HtFhS pic.twitter.com/6MADg316Hy

— City of Yuma (@cityofyuma) April 17, 2019

According to Fox News:

An Arizona mayor on Tuesday declared an emergency in the city he represents due to what he said was the strain caused by the incoming flow of migrants.

Yuma Mayor Douglas Nicholls shared the news on Facebook, explaining that he “proclaimed a local emergency” in the city “due to the migrant family releases overwhelming the local shelter system.”

He went on ask for the federal government to step in and provide assistance.

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“I am calling upon the federal government to alleviate the humanitarian crisis in Yuma, as our NGO’s are overcapacity and cannot sustain providing this aid,” the post said.

Nicholls, in a video, laid out his reasoning behind the declaration, saying that he ultimately feels that its what’s best for both Yuma and the incoming migrants.

Watch the video of the Mayor explaining the situation here.