By Wendy Anders

Roughly 1,500 immigrants stranded at Costa Rica’s northern border on their journey northward are being provided with shelter, water, electricity, showers, portable toilets, a cooking area, and play places for children, according to the Communications Minister Mauricio Herrera.

The Costa Rican Food Bank has recently pulled 8 tons from their emergency supplies to send to the shelters to aid the homeless travellers hailing from Haiti, different African countries, and other parts of the world, reported El Diario Extra, Costa Rica’s Spanish daily tabloid paper.

Goods such as rice, beans, milk, canned goods, oil, cereal, cornmeal, and hygiene products including liquid detergent, toothbrushes, laundry soap, and toothpaste valued at 20 million colones (about $36,000) were sent from the Pavas storage center.

The items were presented to the General Director of Migration Gisella Yockchen Mora in Pavas on Friday, reported El Extra.

At the event, Food Bank President Miguel Chavarría said, “The commitment of the Food Bank is to fight hunger in the country, this includes being able to help all who reside in our country who need support with food and other items for their welfare.”

Recent immigration data shows that as of mid-October, more than 13 thousand illegal immigrants have been registered in Costa Rica, of whom 1,000 were children.