TAMPA, Fla. — An immigration attorney in Tampa says he is being inundated with calls from Venezuelans desperate for answers following an end to U.S. protections that shielded many from deportation.

“They are devastated – they are frantic – they don’t want to leave their homes,” immigration attorney Milton Toro Marquez said.

He has more than 100 Venezuelan clients and expects to list to grow.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s order affects over 300,000 Venezuelans living in the U.S. with Temporary Protected Status slated to expire in April.

That’s about half of the approximately 600,000 who have the protection.

The remaining protections are set to expire at the end of September.

The termination notice will be published Wednesday and go into effect 60 days later.

“They don’t know what to do, they don’t know where to go – they don’t know if they have done the right process,” Marquez said.

Many have fled Venezuela in the face of food shortages and economic turmoil and came to the United States under TPS.

“They put their lives and their children’s lives in danger to flee that country,” Marquez added.

The Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem says conditions have improved in the country to the point that protected status is no longer needed.

The U.S. doesn’t have diplomatic relations with Venezuela, limiting deportation options. But the Trump administration has made securing deportations to Venezuela a top goal.