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With the customs and border protection facilities overcrowded, the city is preparing to accommodate thousands of migrants who move into the area before starting the journey to other destinations.
Brownsville City Manager Noel Bernal said Saturday that at first only about 50 people were landed each day. It is averaging around 300 in recent days and others are expected to come out in the next few days.
The Customs and Border Protection Service has been saying for months that "the immigration system is broken and its capabilities are critical at the Southwest border." Facilities and Manpower CBP can not stand this dramatic increase in fears of family units and unaccompanied children. "
About a thousand undocumented immigrants are apprehended every day in the area of the Rio Grande Valley, said a customs spokesman. CNN has contacted the agency to find out how many people will be released in the next few days.
According to a tweet from the agency, Brownsville 's border protection facilities have a hospitality capacity of 174%, with 5,355 people in detention.
Until now, no migrant has spent more than one night in Brownsville, said Bernal.
"Our goal has not been to become a permanent stop, but simply a temporary stop where we are an intermediary to facilitate their trip," Bernal said.
CBP has already released undocumented immigrants into the region under the Obama administration, but the situation was better coordinated, he said.
"It's a different administration and a different environment," Bernal said.
In the past, the Border Protection Service offered the freed migrants a ticket to a new city.
But Bernal said municipal staff and non-profit organizations are increasingly using mobile phones to help migrants get in touch with families and buy tickets for their loved ones.
The agency gives priority to the release of families whose leader is a woman. Unaccompanied children are also a priority, but they are transferred to Health and Human Services.
Federal authorities want the help of lawmakers.
"DHS is determined to respond to this humanitarian need, but the current situation is unsustainable for border patrol operations," said the border protection communiqué. "This status quo is not an option.The legal framework must be addressed.The only cure for this crisis is the action of Congress."
President Donald Trump intervened on Twitter on Saturday, accusing the Democrats and saying the resolution would take an hour and a vote.
"But the Dems do not care about the crime, they do not want any victory for Trump and the Republicans, even if they are good for the United States!" he wrote.
He added another tweet saying that Mexico had to prevent people from trying to cross the country and to enter the United States.
CNN's Natasha Chen, Hollie Silverman, Shawn Nottingham, Sandoval Polo, Priscilla Alvarez and Geneva Sands contributed to this report.
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