Hundreds of immigrants illegally in Florida have been deported from Alligator Alcatraz, Gov. Ron DeSantis announced on Friday.
100 of these migrants have been fully deported through flights chartered by the Department of Homeland Security, while hundreds more have exited the Everglades detention center and are en route to leaving the country through a stopover in Louisiana, DeSantis said at a press conference from Alligator Alcatraz.
"To get to where we were at the beginning of this month, and to now have flights leaving already with a facility that's been built out—That's incredible," DeSantis said, noting that Alligator Alcatraz was built in just eight days and has only been open since July 1.
"This is just the opening stage. You're gonna see this really ramp up," he added.
Alligator Alcatraz has a 10,500-foot-long runway leading away from the 39-square-mile territory, located deep within the swamplands of the Everglades and Big Cypress National Preserve.
Under direction from DeSantis and Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier, state agencies rapidly converted the near-defunct Dade-Collier Training and Transition Airport into a tented, temporary detention center with an estimated price tag of $450 million in late June.
Florida officials say the federal government will reimburse them.
DeSantis, joined by Florida Division of Emergency Management Director Kevin Guthrie, denied a slew of reports Friday alleging that detainees can't speak to their lawyers, that contracts have been pulled from state websites, and that some people have been wrongfully detained.
"Everybody here is on a final removal order," Guthrie said, claiming that they receive detailed information about each captured migrant from a federal agency like Immigration and Customs Enforcement or Border Patrol.
Still, critics abound on social media and in the judicial system, where three separate lawsuits have been filed by Democratic lawmakers, environmental advocacy groups, and the ACLU over wide-ranging constitutional, ecological, and humanitarian concerns.
Many of these fears first spawned on Alligator Alcatraz's opening day. DeSantis had joined with President Donald Trump and other top officials to laud the nation's newest migrant detention center, which they said could hold up to 5,000 beds and withstand a Category 2 hurricane.
A heavy, 45-minute summer storm ensued, leading to significant leaking in the tents and an outcry from Democrats. Officials promised that they tightened the tents immediately after the storm, but skeptics insist the center isn't suitable for detainees.
Later reports from the Miami Herald alleged secretive, no-bid contracts, poor food quality, no lawyer access, and the brief detention of a 15-year-old. On Friday, Guthrie rebutted all claims while striking out at the media.
"Just in case you forgot, we're number one in the nation in emergency response and recovery," he said, after promising repeatedly to "get back on track" after getting "riled up."
"Whether it's Florida's standard or the national standard, we meet or exceed the higher standard," he added.
