Article content continued

But those trends can shift quickly, and Dupuis said they’re ready for whatever happens next. “I’d say we’re dealing with the usual crowds of people coming from countries where horrors or wars are happening,” she said.

At first, many asylum seekers remained in Quebec, but now, those who don’t speak French or don’t want to learn tend to head to Ontario, which has had its own problems dealing with the crush and is also seeking federal compensation.

Dupuis notes that Ontario didn’t have the same infrastructure in place as Quebec and will have to develop services. “If you don’t receive them well, you’re going to have problems after, because they integrate much better if you ease their entrance into the country,” she said.

Francois Dore, a retired police officer who lives just a few kilometres from the border, said before the dramatic increase in 2017, residents would routinely find asylum seekers roaming the street, heading north, looking to be picked up by authorities so they could begin the refugee claim process.

He said he has no issues with desperate people looking for a better life. “If they can make it, and if they can be an asset to Canada — if they can do well — then all the better,” Dore said.

Dore recalled the story of one man, a Yemeni asylum seeker who arrived at Roxham Road two years before the 2017 crush. Dore met the man, a lawyer, as he returned to the border in 2017 with a television crew to see the crossing point again, a pilgrimage that came just a few days before he was to be reunited with his family.

“I remember asking the guy, ‘Was it the right choice you made when you crossed the border that way?’ ” Dore said. “He told me, tears in his eyes, ‘It was the only way.’ “