The United States has begun airlifting migrants out of the makeshift detention center in the Florida Everglades known as “Alligator Alcatraz,” Governor Ron DeSantis said on Friday. Flights operated by the Department of Homeland Security have removed about 100 detainees in recent days, marking the first deportations directly from the remote site, which sits on an abandoned airstrip west of Miami. Built in roughly a week at the end of June and opened on 3 July, the tent-and-trailer complex can currently house 2,000 people, with state officials planning to double capacity to 4,000. DeSantis said the pace of expulsions will accelerate and that members of the Florida National Guard will serve as on-site immigration judges once Washington signs off on the plan. State officials portray the facility as a cornerstone of President Donald Trump’s expanded crackdown on undocumented immigration, which has already led to agreements for all Florida counties to cooperate with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Critics, including local activists and Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava, call the site inhumane, citing six hospitalizations and a lawsuit alleging detainees lack access to attorneys. DeSantis dismissed those concerns, insisting the center can withstand a Category 2 hurricane and will be evacuated if a stronger storm threatens. He did not specify the nationalities or destinations of those already removed, saying only that more flights are imminent.