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CNN —
Springfield Mayor Ron Rue has spent over a week scrambling to respond to a wave of bomb threats while subtly noting how the tab to keep people safe is growing daily.
“This is costing the city. We’re definitely in the hundreds of thousands of dollars in expense. We haven’t calculated the overtime, the contracts that need to be secured to be able to secure and communicate… take care of our city,” Rue told CNN’s Boris Sanchez earlier this week.
City officials had already asked for state and federal funding to address the challenges of a growing population – largely driven by the arrival of Haitian immigrants. Then, the small Midwestern city was thrust into the national spotlight, as Donald Trump and running mate JD Vance amplified debunked conspiracy theories claiming Haitian immigrants in Springfield are eating pet cats and dogs.
The false claims triggered a weeklong string of bomb threats. They have shut down schools, government offices and grocery stores. The chaos has put more law enforcement on the streets, including tower cameras and state troopers stationed at public schools — all, at a cost to the city that has faced budget shortfalls. In the past decade, the city made significant cuts to its police and fire departments.
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