The first group of immigrants was scheduled to arrive Wednesday night at a new detention center deep in the Florida Everglades that officials have dubbed “Alligator Alcatraz,” the state’s attorney general said.
“Alligator Alcatraz will be checking in hundreds of criminal illegal aliens tonight,” Florida Republican Attorney General James Uthmeier said on the X social media platform. “Next stop: back to where they came from.”
The facility, at an airport used for training, will have a capacity of about 3,000 detainees when fully operational, according to Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis said. The center was built in eight days over 10 miles of Everglades. It features more than 200 security cameras, 28,000-plus feet of barbed wire and 400 security personnel.
Environmental groups and Native American tribes have protested against the center, contending it is a threat to the fragile Everglades system, would be cruel to detainees because of heat and mosquitoes, and is on land the tribes consider sacred.
DeSantis and other state officials say locating the facility in the rugged and remote Florida Everglades is meant as a deterrent, and naming it after the notorious federal prison of Alcatraz, an island fortress known for its brutal conditions, is meant to send a message. It’s another sign of how the Trump administration and its allies are relying on scare tactics to try to persuade people in the country illegally to leave voluntarily.
State and federal officials have touted the plans on social media and conservative airwaves, sharing a meme of a compound ringed with barbed wire and “guarded” by alligators wearing hats labeled “ICE” for Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The Republican Party of Florida has taken to fundraising off the detention center, selling branded T-shirts and beer koozies emblazoned with the facility’s name.
Rainwater seeping into tents
On Tuesday, some rainwater seeped into one of the holding tents.
On Wednesday, Stephanie Hartman, Deputy Director of Communications with the Florida Division of Emergency Management, responded with the following statement:
“Overnight, the vendors went back and tightened any seams at the base of the structures that allowed water intrusion during the heavy storm, which was minimal.”
“The timing of detainee arrivals at the detention facility will be determined by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Florida stands ready to support federal operations as needed, and the state has ensured the facility is prepared to receive individuals once DHS and ICE finalize transportation logistics and scheduling.”
