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New Asylum Seekers Arrive In Portland From Southern Border

Patty Wight
/
Maine Public File

Asylum seekers arrived Friday morning in Portland from the southern U.S. border.

City spokesperson Jessica Grondin says the 28 individuals will be housed for now at the family shelter warming center, and that they are primarily from Congo and Angola.

“Like the previous asylum seekers that we received, we've been told there are a few more arrivals tomorrow morning but, beyond that, we do not have any other confirmations of folks arriving at this point,” says Grondin.

Portland City Manager Jon Jennings has said that a measure that allows asylum seekers access to the General Assistance fund, which was approved by the Mills Administration, will help provide s ome financial relief. He also says the city will work with nonprofits and surrounding municipalities to house people that can't be accommodated in Portland. Nearly 450 asylum seekers arrived in Portland this summer and were temporarily housed at the Portland Expo Center.

Ed is a Maine native who spent his early childhood in Livermore Falls before moving to Farmington. He graduated from Mount Blue High School in 1970 before going to the University of Maine at Orono where he received his BA in speech in 1974 with a broadcast concentration. It was during that time that he first became involved with public broadcasting. He served as an intern for what was then called MPBN TV and also did volunteer work for MPBN Radio.