DENVER (KDVR) — The Mile High City has experienced an influx of migrants that began at the beginning of December and hasn’t slowed down since.
By the end of December, nearly 3,000 migrants had found their way to Denver. Most ended up in shelters, while others left the city after making connections and headed to their final destinations.
The spike in migrant arrivals began at the beginning of the month, but the city has only released daily counts since Dec. 16. See those numbers in the graph below.
An emergency shelter was opened to accommodate the first wave that showed up around the weekend of Dec. 3. More shelters have been opened as more people have arrived in the city.
The Office of Emergency Management activated its operations center and the Joint Information Center on Dec. 8 to coordinate the city’s response to the increase of migrants. Denver Mayor Michael Hancock issued an emergency declaration for the city and county on Dec. 15.
The migrants are from South and Central American countries, mostly from Venezuela, but the OEM said their travel here is not believed to be politically organized.
How to help migrants in Denver
Donations can be made to the Denver Community Church, American Friends Service Committee or the Colorado Hosting Asylum Network. The city is also asking faith-based nonprofit groups and other community groups for help with the latest increase of migrants, financially and physically.
Anyone interested in volunteering needs to be registered and credentialed.
The city established a drop-off location for physical donations, run by Papagayo, at Iglesia Ciudad de Dios located at 5255 W. Warren Ave.