Alligator Alcatraz Detainees Claim ‘Grim’ Conditions Over Being Fed Ham Sandwiches

Migrant detainees being held in Florida’s “Alligator Alcatraz” have claimed conditions at the detention center are “grim,” citing how they’ve been fed “cold ham sandwiches,” according to The Washington Post.

Florida’s new detention center was officially approved by the Trump administration in June and opened weeks later, costing roughly $450 million for 5,000 beds to house illegal migrants and other foreign nationals. The Washington Post released a report Thursday with detainees, their relatives and former guards describing the conditions of the center.

According to the piece, sources who spoke anonymously described how the center allegedly suffered from water “pooling on the floors,” being fed “cold ham sandwiches” and lacking toiletries like deodorant, toothpaste and toothbrushes. A former guard and immigration attorney also told the outlet that, in order to pass time, the detainees were creating soccer balls out of towels and also “crafted dominoes” from cardboard lunch boxes.

“They’re laying down all day,” a former guard told The Post.

In a phone call shared with the outlet, one detainee described how he had been unable to shower for four days, while another said there had been no running water after being taken to the shower facilities. Both former staffers and detainees also complained to The Post about mosquitoes, with one saying the center had not provided bug spray and raising concerns about contracting “a disease.”

On Saturday, a bipartisan group of Florida lawmakers toured the site, with Democrats and Republicans walking away with opposite views of the