Congressman Reveals Conditions At Alligator Alcatraz That Made His 'Heart Sink' After Tour

A Democratic Congressman revealed the horrific conditions he witnessed while visiting the newly opened 'Alligator Alcatraz' migrant detention center in the Florida Everglades.

Florida Rep. Maxwell Frost visited the facility on Saturday alongside a group of other lawmakers from both major parties. The group of legislators was finally allowed to tour the center after weeks of being denied entry, culminating in a lawsuit levied against Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, urging him to allow elected officials into the facility.

Frost described the inhumane conditions he witnessed within the detention center following his visit.

"They opened the door, there was about six security guards standing there pushing us back. But we could see in, and we could hear everybody. When those doors opened, what I saw made my heart sink. I saw 32 people per cage, about 6 cages in one tent. I saw a lot of young men who looked like me, people who were my age," Frost began.

"People were yelling "help me help me". I heard in the back someone saying "I'm a US citizen." And as we were walking away they started chanting "Libertad, libertad." Freedom. Looking into these cages, you could see, it was warm and hot within the tent, people were sweating, some people had taken off the top of their clothing because it was just so hot. Some of them were drenched in sweat," he continued.

"The food we saw was not enough food. They were being fed essentially a small sandwich and a bag of chips. Not just that, but the conditions outside, of course, it's blazing hot... The drinking water comes from the toilet. Not everyone is going to be able to drink as much water as they'd like to because of that inconvenience. But also, it's gross and disgusting, and that's where people are being held," he added.

Other Democratic lawmakers from Florida echoed Frost's sentiments, describing the appalling conditions they witnessed within the facility following their tour.

"I went to the Everglades detention facility today. Even on a limited, sanitized tour it was clear: this is an internment camp. Our taxpayer dollars are being wasted to cruelly cage human beings," said Democratic Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz.

"I brought a thermostat in with me — a manual thermostat," Schultz continued. "In the medical area, it was 85 degrees."

"Water has to be trucked into this facility — no working pipes," Democratic Rep. Darren Soto said Saturday. "It makes no sense [that] this is here."

The newly opened migrant detention facility was built and opened within eight days. It is located at the Dade-Collier Training and Transition Airport in the middle of the Florida Everglades