SAN YSIDRO, Calif. (KGTV) — It's been nearly a week since the county shut down its migrant welcome center.
The closure is putting a strain on community organizations that are helping the asylum seekers who are being dropped off on the streets.
"We welcome four to five buses in the morning, and then there are buses in the afternoon," Ruth Mendez, a volunteer with Free Them All SD, said.
According to volunteers, around 300 migrants are dropped off daily at the Iris Avenue Transit Station in San Ysidro.
"As always, organizations have stepped up and volunteers to pick up the slack," said Robert Vivar, Migration Missioner with the Episcopal Diocese of San Diego.
For many asylum seekers, San Diego is not their final destination. Immigrant advocacy non-profits and organizations, such as the Immigrant Defenders Law Center, have provided asylum seekers free trips to the airport and other locations.
"These are all funded by the organizations. It is not funded by any level of government," Mendez said.
The county closed its migrant welcome center last Thursday after running out of $6 million in funding.
It served around 80,000 migrants between October and February.
"There are absolutely no facilities for the migrants being dropped off here street side," Vivar said.
Previously, organizations would create makeshift welcome centers and provide food and things like phone chargers.
This time, Vivar said they're using what little resources they have to get migrants to the airport.
"The idea is to get them to an area where they're going to be safe... and also be able to have internet... have a little more facility to be able to continue that journey," he said.
On Tuesday, the San Diego County Board of Supervisors approved a plan to develop a long-term migrant shelter.
But it's something that migrant advocates said should have been the goal all along.
"As a border town that San Diego is, it's disappointing that it's not already set up," Mendez said.
