Almost 300 newly arrived migrants were released by officials in Yuma, Arizona, on Friday illustrating how border cities are struggling to cope with a huge surge in arrivals in the past week.

It coincided with the end of Title 42, and the lifting of a Trump-era restriction designed to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

The result was that Customs and Border Protection (CBP) had been holding as many as 28,000 migrants at its facilities, far beyond its capacity, according to a local official.

On Thursday, the mayor of Yuma announced that CBP was planning releases in the city of migrants who had not undergone full processing, although he insisted they had been 'vetted.'

On Friday afternoon, three white buses with blacked out windows pulled into the Yuma Public Safety Training Facility close to the city's airport.

The location was a closely held secret, but DailyMail.com was on hand to witness the release. A briefing document said 141 were being freed.

Streams of people could be seen climbing out of the buses and being directed to a shaded holding area, where there was at least some shelter from 96F temperatures.

From there, it is understood they will be put on buses to take them to Phoenix. 

It followed a similar release of about 140 people at a separate location in Yuma and at nearby San Luis in the morning. 

Yuma County Supervisor Jonathan Lines said the process was an admission that federal authorities simply could not cope.