PORTLAND, Maine — As many as 30 to 40 tents make up Portland's Deering Oaks encampment, but sometime Thursday morning they will be removed, according to the Maine Department of Transportation.
"This morning I was contacted by a client of ours saying that a state trooper had come by and told them they have a 24-hour notice to evict the encampment," Dani Laliberte of The Opportunity Alliance said.
Laliberte said this was then confirmed by the MaineDOT.
"The plan is we'll come to the encampment in the morning as a team and try to figure out where folks want to move next," she told NEWS CENTER Maine.
The problem is: there still isn't enough room at the city's shelters and no clear immediate solution.
Laliberte says it's time for all Mainers to speak up.
"We have to understand these are our brothers and our sisters, our aunts, and our uncles, and it’s our job to contact our legislators, to contact mayors, contact the governor, and request there is a better solution," she explained. "This is a humanitarian crisis. People are in harm's way. This is not going away."
A MaineDOT spokesperson confirmed to NEWS CENTER Maine of plans to clear the site, but wouldn't comment further.
This is not the only encampment expected to be removed again in Portland. The city says it plans to close down the encampment along the Fore River Parkway next Wednesday.