US state of Florida to open 2nd immigration detention facility

HOUSTON, United States

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis announced Thursday that a second immigration detention facility will be built in the state, according to multiple media reports.

DeSantis said his administration is opening what he termed "Deportation Depot" to house illegal immigrants detained by authorities.

"We are authorizing and will be soon opening this new illegal immigration detention, processing and deportation facility here in north Florida," he said at a news conference.

The new immigration detention center will be located at the Baker Correctional Institution in Sanderson, 165 miles (265 kilometers) north of Orlando, and will be able to house up to 1,300 detainees. DeSantis said inmates will not be held there indefinitely.

The announcement of "Deportation Depot" comes roughly one month after the state opened a south Florida immigration detention center in the Everglades, 25 miles (40 kilometers) west of Miami, known as "Alligator Alcatraz."

DeSantis touted his state's crackdown on illegal immigration as being the toughest in the United States.

"We've been securing the border, enforcing immigration laws and removing illegal aliens who are in our society now, sending them back to their home country," he said. "We have done more on this than any other state by a country mile."

Until the new immigration detention center is opened, Florida will continue to process undocumented migrants at "Alligator Alcatraz," which can hold up to 5,000 detainees.

A federal judge last week temporarily halted any further construction at "Alligator Alcatraz" for two weeks to prevent possible harm to the protected Everglades ecosystem.

The state and federal government, however, can continue to house detainees there until the order is lifted.