Florida Invokes Emergency Powers to Build ‘Alligator Alcatraz’

The new illegal immigration detention center deep in the Everglades has already been approved by the Department of Homeland Security.

An isolated Everglades airfield about 45 miles west of Miami in a still from an undated video. Courtesy of the Office of Attorney General James Uthmeier via AP

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis invoked emergency powers on June 24 to clear the way for Alligator Alcatraz, a new illegal immigration detention center deep in the Everglades.

The plans for another complex to hold illegal immigrants apprehended by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)—and awaiting processing and deportation—were drafted and submitted by the Florida Division of Emergency Management (FDEM) to the Department of Homeland Security and received Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s approval on June 23.