Shortly after dawn, there were about 200 people in line.

Mexican nationals began lining up before 10p Tuesday in a bid to be among the first to get passports and consular IDs from the ‘Mexican Consulate on Wheels‘ program being offered today through Sunday at the Red Bank Charter School.

By 5:30a today, more than 200 people were waiting for the 9a opening of doors, many having slept in lawn chairs and on the asphalt under jackets and blankets.

Misael Lopez, left, came ready for a drop in temperature; two women slept in an alley behind the school; and Jesus Venegas was awake and eager to be among the first to be served. (Click photos to enlarge)

The line snaked from a door on the west side of the building through an alleyway and along the perimeter of the school’s playground.

Misael Lopez of Ocean Township said he arrived with some relatives at about midnight in pursuit of a passport. If not for the visit by consulate officials, he said, he’d have to go to New York for the document. “It’s, like, twice as much time” as he expects to spend at the school, he said.

A charter school official tells redbankgreen that the school is providing the space as it does to many other requesting groups, and that the organizers are responsible for cleanup and other costs.

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