Two planes that recently landed in the Hudson Valley are creating a stir.
Orange County Executive Steve Neuhaus believes planes that came to Orange County Airport Friday carried migrant children.
Neuhaus posted to his Facebook page on Friday, claiming young migrants were flown into the area. He said the flights were chartered by the federal government.
In a roughly three-minute video, Neuhaus said he didn't know the origin of the planes, but said children deplaned, boarded buses and left the airport. He said he doesn’t know where the planes came from or who is responsible for the flights.
The destination of the buses was unclear, though Neuhaus said they may have been distributed to New York City, Kingston and Poughkeepsie.
“I think it's a very natural response for folks to say, you know, but are they going to feel threatened almost," Orange County Human Rights Commission Executive Director Inaudy Gil Esposito said. "The issue with the resources is that because we are just getting out of a pandemic, which is technically still a pandemic, our resources are already tight.”
The county said it’s concerned for the well-being of the children, but it needs information about what is going on regarding the flights and others like them that recently arrived in the Hudson Valley.
“Between 2012 and 2013, there were a lot of different programs and agencies and nonprofits that started opening up and coming out to support and provide those resources,” said Gil Esposito.
The Department of Homeland Security said it was not involved. The Immigration and Customs Enforcement did not respond to a request for comment. Spectrum News 1 also reached out to the state for comment.
Orange County Legislator Kevindaryán Luján believes whoever the children are and all undocumented immigrants deserve to have a chance to fulfill the American dream.
“That is our responsibility, to do everything that we can to support those children and those families, and making sure that they have all the resources at their disposal,” Luján said.
Neuhaus said this was the second time in a week that a plane landed with children on board. He called on federal authorities for more transparency regarding where the flights are coming from and who is on them.