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Crowded Tijuana shelters could see more migrants once Title 42 is lifted next week

According to Municipal Office of Migrant Services in Tijuana, an estimated 10,000 migrants are already living in Tijuana, half are living in the city's 30 shelters.

SAN DIEGO COUNTY, Calif. — The co-director of a Tijuana shelter for migrants said there is no plan on how to handle a potential increase in the number of migrants coming to the US-Mexico border once Title 42 is lifted on May 11.

"Right now we're not sure what to expect, we're in total uncertainty as to how the process will be," said Judith Cabrera, co-director of the Border Line Crisis Center.

There are tents set up inside the center so they can house more people, including families with children. "They're stranded in a country that can't offer them any security, that cannot offer them any proper programs for their situation," she said.

According to the Municipal Office of Migrant Services in Tijuana, an estimated 10,000 migrants are already living in Tijuana. Roughly half are living in the city's 30 shelters.

Cabrera said since Title 42 was put in place, Mexico has been acting as a 'wall.' She said there's been a lot of confusion amongst the shelter directors and amongst the migrants about the asylum process.

"The United States has to face the situation they have created in the last six or seven years with all these restrictions," said Cabrera. "And they have to see it through. They have the capacity, They have the resources. They just keep saying they don't.  We're able to see with the Ukrainians, they do have the capacity to process hundreds of thousands a day."

According to the Department of Homeland Security, 270,000 Ukrainians have been welcomed into the United States.

Cabrera said the shelters in Tijuana are meant to be temporary places to stay, not long-term. She fears even more migrants will end up living on the streets.

WATCH RELATED: Number of migrants gathered at US-Mexico border continues to rise ahead of Title 42 expiration

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