WASHINGTON, June 18 - U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement said on Thursday that detainees at a Florida facility nicknamed "Alligator Alcatraz" have been relocated to other detention locations in response to the arrival of hurricane season.
"As we enter into hurricane season, ICE and the state of Florida have moved illegal aliens from the soft sided facility," an ICE spokesperson said in an email, according to the agency.
Florida's top emergency management official, Kevin Guthrie, said the detention center itself remains open but described it as "always designed to be temporary." Guthrie added that he had not seen ICE's statement before it was reported by the press.
ICE statistics show the agency had held an average of about 1,400 detainees at the facility from October 1, 2025, through early April of this year.
Reporting in May indicated that Florida intended to shut down the controversial federal migrant detention center. The facility had drawn scrutiny amid broader debates over federal immigration enforcement.
ICE, which operates under the Department of Homeland Security, has been central to the Biden-era and Trump-era policy debates on immigration enforcement. The agency is a key element of President Donald Trump's aggressive immigration crackdown, a campaign that has drawn criticism from rights groups who say it violates free speech and due process rights.
Advocacy organizations have argued the crackdown has produced an unsafe environment for certain communities, particularly ethnic minorities, and have raised concerns that enforcement actions have led to racial profiling. Supporters of the tougher enforcement approach, including Trump and Republican backers such as Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, say the measures are intended to curb illegal immigration and enhance domestic security.
The announcement that detainees were moved because of hurricane season underscores operational and logistical considerations at temporary and soft-sided detention sites, while the reported intention to close the facility highlights a continuing, politically charged debate about federal detention practices in the state.
Note: The relocation was described by ICE as a response to hurricane-season preparedness; the detention center was characterized by state officials as temporary, and prior reporting indicated state plans to close the facility.