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Gov't Closing Emergency Child Immigrant Shelters

WASHINGTON (AP) - The U.S. government is closing emergency shelters at military base shelters in Texas, Oklahoma and California being used to temporarily house unaccompanied immigrant children caught crossing the border.

Health and Human Services spokesman Kenneth Wolfe says operations at the shelters will soon be suspended because there have been fewer child immigrants caught at the border and the government has expanded capacity at other shelters.

Oklahoma's shelter at Fort Sill is expected to close by Friday. Shelters in Texas at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland and in California at the Naval Base Ventura County-Port Hueneme will wrap up operations in the next two to eight weeks.

The shelters have housed a combined 7,700 immigrant children since opening in May and early June.

(© Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

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