WASHINGTON – A total of 180 Cuban immigrants have arrived in Laredo, southern Texas, from Costa Rica, the first batch in a pilot plan to address an immigration crisis that has left 8,000 people stranded in the Central American country.

Most of the immigrants flew from Costa Rica to El Salvador, where they boarded buses to Guatemala and Mexico, then took another flight before finally landing on United States soil Thursday and Friday.

Costa Rican Foreign Minister Manuel Gonzalez had said earlier in the week the plan was to make two trips per day, but that there might be changes to the agenda.

The plan seeks to resolve the crisis sparked on Nov. 15, when the Nicaraguan government banned Cuban immigrants from passing through its territory, citing security and sovereignty risks and stranding nearly 8,000 Cubans in Costa Rica on transit visas, also called “salvo conducto,” or an extraordinary visa for safe passage.

The 180 migrants who arrived in the U.S. Friday were the first group of Cubans that had been marooned in Costa Rica after Nicaragua closed its border two months ago.

Their epic journey to the U.S. through Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala and Mexico cost them $555 each, a fee paid for out-of-pocket for them to reach the U.S., where they hope to qualify for immigration under the Cuban Adjustment Act.

The latest surge in Cubans to the U.S. comes amid widespread fears in Cuba that the American law – which grants benefits to Cuban refugees – will change once relations between Washington and Havana are normalized.

On Jan. 18 a meeting will be held in Guatemala between representatives of Central American governments to assess the success of the first transfer.

Meanwhile, Costa Rica, which suspended issuing the extraordinary transit visas to Cubans on Dec. 18, has set up 38 shelters offering humanitarian care to all stranded Cubans.

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