Just weeks into operation, a temporary migrant detention facility known as “Alligator Alcatraz” is facing some major issues, including swarms of mosquitoes, leaks, backed-up portable toilets and sewage that must be taken off-site. The poor conditions were first reported by The Washington Post on Wednesday, July 16.
Lack of electricity and running water
The detention center also lacks electricity and running water. Water for both drinking and bathing must be brought in several times a day but it’s still not enough. There are also reports of rainwater leaking into the tents that are designed to house detainees being held in chain-linked enclosures. The alleged conditions were detailed in accounts from three former guards and detainees who were interviewed by The Post.
They provide the latest look inside the $450 million detention facility, hailed by the Trump administration as a model to house migrants as it ramps up its deportation efforts. President Donald Trump and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said the detention center in the Everglades has natural deterrents for those seeking to escape, including alligators, pythons and panthers.
Previous criticism
The center’s creation has drawn backlash from Democrats, environmentalists and local leaders as well as immigration rights advocates, who call the facility inhumane and costly.
However, state officials, who have not allowed independent inspections of the facility by some lawmakers, deny accusations that conditions are poor.
“The plumbing and sewage claims are false. The facility is in good working order, and detainees have access to drinking water, showers, and clean facilities for hygiene,” said Stephanie Hartman, deputy director of the Florida Division of Emergency Management, by email.
Former guards say they were enticed by pay
Three former guards at the center told The Post that they were attracted to the job because of the pay, which offered $26 an hour plus overtime at $39 an hour, according to online ads and documents reviewed by the news outlet. The former workers were not identified because of fears of retribution and nondisclosure agreements.
One former guard said she left her former job at another correctional center because of the high pay but quit a week into her job at “Alligator Alcatraz” because she was upset over the conditions for workers and migrants. She also noted that she was hired by Critical Response Strategies, a Jacksonville-based consulting firm, and asked to start work the same day she applied online. CRS did not respond to a request for comment. The Jacksonville company has a $78 million contract to assist in managing the center, which includes a warden, camp manager and correctional officers, as stated on Florida’s contract website.
Teeming with mosquitoes
Workers are given a can of insect repellent on their first day on the job, but detainees are reportedly sprayed only once when they arrive, according to three former guards.
“The mosquitoes are filling the bathrooms, the showers. You go in the shower, you shower with millions of mosquitoes. They give you bug spray, but that still doesn’t help,” a former contracted guard told The Post. The guard also told the paper that she was fired by her CRS supervisor without a clear reason.
Detainees have also complained of swarms of mosquitoes, with some raising concerns they may contract a disease from the insects’ bites.
Migrants have also reported a lack of available bathing opportunities. One detainee said he wasn’t able to shower for four days. Former guards also tell The Post that meals are often cold and of poor quality, as well as unsanitary conditions.
When questioned about reports of poor conditions by detainees and former guards, Florida state officials denied the accusations and said that detainees have access to clean drinking water and full-size showers are available at any time.
“Each individual is issued a personal cup they can refill at any time, and bottled water is provided at meals,” Hartman said in an email to The Post. “Tanks are regularly sanitized, flushed, and tested to ensure water quality.”
Hartman also noted there have been no life-threatening incidents at the facility and that migrants have access to phone and video calls with their attorneys.
Staffing at facility and number of detainees
The facility has a reported workforce of more than 1,000 employees, including officials from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Florida National Guard. While the state and federal officials have failed to disclose how many detainees are at the facility, lawmakers who toured the center say it is more than 750.
A group of Florida Republicans who visited the facility described the conditions as clean and adequate. A group of Democrats who toured the center expressed skepticism that the tour didn’t reveal the true extent of conditions at the facility. Democratic state lawmakers report they were forced to leave when it appeared it would rain, noting that even when some requested to stay to see how the tents held up during rainfall, they were still denied that opportunity.
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Author: Alex Delia
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