Denver has spent nearly $8 million responding to an immigration crisis that has seen more than 5,000 immigrants seek shelter in the Mile High City.

The $7.9 million in costs – provided by the City and County of Denver’s Joint Information Center (JIC) – were through Monday.

Personnel accounts for the lion’s share of the spending.

The city has seen an influx of immigrants – mostly Venezuelans fleeing hunger and political violence and crossing the U.S. border illegally – since early December, when almost roughly 100 turned up downtown at Union Station.

The vast majority of the 5,150 immigrants who have arrived since Dec. 9 made Denver a stopover on their way somewhere else, most notably New York and Illinois. About 30% of the immigrants intend to stay in Denver, according to city and state officials.

Number of immigrants in Denver triples since emergency declaration

When issuing an emergency declaration on Dec. 15, Mayor Michael B. Hancock said the crisis – which at the time had cost taxpayers $800,000 – had strained city resources.

Expenses include food, clothing, security and transportation.

Here is the breakdown:

? $91,979 equipment and supply costs

? $1,692,729 food

? $4,572,713 personnel

? $871,531 transportation

? $30,139 janitorial services

? $378,486 hotels

? $263,694 services

? $38,584 health services

JIC officials acknowledged in an email to the Denver Gazette that the “influx of migrants has had, and continues to have, a significant strain on city resources.”

City leaders have sought state and federal funding to help offset the costs and have received $2.5 million.