- A homeless shelter coordinator on Martha's Vineyard said the island doesn't have space for 50 migrants who were flown there earlier this week.
- The coordinator said the island is facing a housing crisis.
A homeless shelter coordinator for Martha's Vineyard said the posh Massachusetts island does not have the housing for the dozens of migrants who were flown there as part of a political stunt by Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.
Lisa Belcastro, the coordinator of the Harbor Homes winter shelter on the island, told reporters that the upscale enclave does not have the "services to take care of" the 50 migrants who were flown on two chartered planes from Texas to Martha's Vineyard on Wednesday.
"The difficult challenges are, at some point in time they have to move from here to somewhere else," Belcastro told reporters on Thursday, according to a now-viral video clip.
—William Woods (@William08688218) September 16, 2022
Belcastro added, "We don't have the services to take care of 50 immigrants, and we certainly don't have housing — we are in a housing crisis as we are on this island."
"We can't house everyone here who lives and works here. We don't have housing for 50 more people," the coordinator said. "That is our primary crisis."
Belcastro said that the shelter on Martha's Vineyard is merely a "stopgap."
"This is an emergency shelter — we're not long-term care," she said, adding that "everyone is meeting about this."
Belcastro's comments came after locals at the exclusive destination, where some of the nation's elite own property, pulled together to help out the migrants.
"We'll do everything we can, and you can believe this island community will do everything they can, but [the migrants] need more," said Belcastro.
"Our island jumped into action," Massachusetts state representative Dylan Fernandes said of impromptu relief efforts that included cobbling together temporary beds and "a play area for the children" to help everyone get settled.
A local TV reporter posted a video online showing volunteers delivering hot meals for the new arrivals to St. Andrews Episcopal Church.
—Sharman Sacchetti (@SharmanTV) September 15, 2022
Charlie Crist, the Democratic gubernatorial candidate challenging DeSantis this fall, urged the Department of Justice to investigate his rivals' "disgusting and vile" relocation program.
"Justice needs to be served here," Crist said during a press conference.
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre declined to comment about opening any federal investigations, but did say that "using migrants as political pawns is reckless and just wrong."