Hidalgo County officials urging residents living in colonias to seek shelter from the cold weather
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Emergency management officials in Hidalgo County are urging the public to not be afraid to seek help as cold weather makes its way to the Rio Grande Valley.
As warming centers and shelters open up throughout the Valley, officials are concerned over those living in colonias who are especially vulnerable to the cold.
If people are undocumented, the county and a community organization are still encouraging people to come seek shelter if needed. According to Hidalgo County Emergency Manager Ricardo Saldana, undocumented people are less likely to seek help, especially during emergencies.
“They don't want to leave their homes because they're afraid that they're going to have some type of interaction with some type of law enforcement or some type of immigration or status,” Saldana said. “That is not the case."
Hidalgo County is coordinating the opening of 10 warming shelters
they say the focus is safety, not immigration.
“They're not going to ask for any type of information,” Saldana said. “Those centers are there for your protection, to keep you warm, keep you safe and away from the elements."
La Union del Pueblo Entero, an organization that works closely with migrants and those living in colonias, echoed Saldana’s message.
"We encourage them to go to these shelters to seek refuge,” LUPE Community Organizer Elizabeth Rodriguez Marquez said. “That's what the community is here for, to offer them that safe space. Their status is not going to be questioned."
LUPE is also encouraging people to use their membership card as a secondary form of ID if needed.
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