Danette Heredia | Staff Writer
FIU recently revealed its participation in supplying and delivering FORT units for the new detention facility in the Everglades, Alligator Alcatraz, at the request of the Florida Division of Emergency Management (FDEM).
Ian Guidicelli, Bureau Chief of Response and State Emergency Response Team at FDEM, contacted FIU’s Senior Vice President for Operations and Safety, Javier Marques, via email to request the FORT units for on-site coordination.
In a one-on-one interview between NBC6 and FIU President Jeanette Nuñez, she explains why FIU provided units for Alligator Alcatraz.
“The university has a mobile office, if you will, that is a state asset. So when the Department of Emergency Management submits a request for a state asset that we physically have, we are obligated to provide it. It’s as simple as: they request it, we provide it — just as we did during COVID and in response to other disasters. These are state assets paid for by the state of Florida,” FIU President Jeanette Nuñez told NBC6.
FIU Board of Trustees Chair, Carlos Duart, is also facing scrutiny after the discovery of his company’s confirmed collaboration with Alligator Alcatraz as one of their contractors, CDR Maguire, working as one of their emergency management consultants.
Many are left unsettled by FIU’s participation in the controversial detention center.
Ron DeSantis recently extended his executive order of emergency management on illegal immigration, allowing the state to use emergency resources and bypass the typical permits necessary.
Alligator Alcatraz is believed to have been built within eight days through the use of a wide range of emergency resources.
Environmental groups have filed a lawsuit against the Homeland Security Secretary concerning the active and potential environmental damage the facility is causing to the sensitive surrounding environments.
“According to Plaintiffs, the detention camp’s construction and operation risks harming the wetlands, wildlife, aquifer, and air and water quality in this sensitive area, and degrading the ‘natural, scenic, hydrologic, floral, and faunal, and recreational values for which the Preserve was created.’” reads the omnibus order.
Many claims from those who were detained at the facility have also come out with statements of poor conditions, neglectful staff, and insufficient living structures described as mostly large tents and temporary structures prone to flooding.
“Detainees report restrictions on their access to water, with showers allowed only once every several days, and drinking water allowed only at mealtimes. Respiratory illnesses have reportedly spread throughout the facility. Numerous detainees have required emergency care via ambulance,” reads the M.A. v Guthrie complaint document.
After U.S. District Judge Kathleen Williams put a two-week halt on any further construction to Alligator Alcatraz, advancements in lawsuits pushed Williams towards the final verdict of shutting it down, giving the state 60 days to clear out the facility.
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