Florida’s state-run immigration detention center in the Everglades—nicknamed “Alligator Alcatraz”—could be completely vacated within days, according to an Aug. 22 email from Florida Division of Emergency Management Executive Director Kevin Guthrie reviewed by the Associated Press. Guthrie told a South Florida rabbi arranging chaplaincy services that “we are probably going to be down to 0 individuals within a few days,” a statement the rabbi and his aide confirmed. The disclosure comes less than a week after U.S. District Judge Kathleen Williams ordered the facility to wind down operations and remove its last detainee within 60 days, citing a lawsuit by the Miccosukee Tribe and environmental groups who say the center threatens sensitive wetlands. Florida has appealed the ruling, while the federal government has asked Williams to pause her order, arguing the site’s thousands of beds are needed amid overcrowding elsewhere. Built in just two months at a remote training airport and opened July 1, the center has cost the state more than $245 million in construction and operating contracts. At its peak this fiscal year, the population hit 462—about 200 above its U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement limit—placing it among the 10 most-overcrowded ICE facilities nationwide. A tour last week by U.S. Rep. Maxwell Frost indicated occupancy had already dropped to roughly 300–350. Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration is simultaneously preparing a second site in north Florida, dubbed “Deportation Depot.” Environmental plaintiffs argue the Everglades facility is no longer needed and want construction to cease until officials comply with federal environmental laws. Judge Williams has yet to rule on the government’s stay request.