Florida Governor Deploys National Guard in Response to Migrant Coastal Surge

In response to the escalating migrant surge on the Florida coast, Governor Ron DeSantis ordered the deployment of the state’s National Guard. The governor ordered the mobilization of soldiers, airmen, equipment, and aircraft to assist federal agencies.

The state of Florida is experiencing a massive spike in migrants making their way by sea to the coast, as Breitbart Texas reported Thursday. Breitbart reached out to Governor DeSantis’s office on Friday morning for a reaction to the surge as more than 4,400 migrants made their way to Florida’s shorelines since August — including more than 1,400 over the New Year’s weekend.

We’re there as U.S. Coast Guard moves 330+ #migrants from Dry Tortugas to Key West. Multiple landings around the new year prompted unprecedented closure of park #exclusive @WPLGLocal10 pic.twitter.com/hCl3vmoqJI

— Janine Stanwood (@JanineWPLG) January 5, 2023

Later on Friday, DeSantis followed the lead of Texas Governor Greg Abbott and ordered the deployment of the state’s National Guard.

“As the negative impacts of Biden’s lawless immigration policies continue unabated, the burden of the Biden administration’s failure falls on local law enforcement who lack the resources to deal with the crisis,” DeSantis said in a written statement. “That is why I am activating the National Guard and directing state resources to help alleviate the strain on local resources. When Biden continues to ignore his legal responsibilities, we will step in to support our communities.”

DeSantis highlighted the impact on Monroe County where the sheriff’s office has only 194 deputies. He said it is particularly burdensome for the sheriff “to dedicate the necessary resources to manage the movement of hundreds of migrants while also ensuring adequate public safety.

DeSantis is ordering airplanes and helicopters from the Florida National Guard and moving additional resources from the state’s Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s marine patrol to ” support water interdictions and ensure the safety of migrants attempting to reach Florida through the Florida Straits.”

Law enforcement partners assigned to the Homeland Security Task Force — Southeast spent the New Year’s weekend apprehending nearly 1,400 migrants at sea and along the islands and coastal areas of the Florida Keys, according to a tweet from the agency. Many of these smuggling interdictions took place on heavily overloaded boats.

The task force reports 364 migrants apprehended in a single incident at the Dry Tortugas National Park. By the conclusion of the incident, the count rose to 427 migrants removed from the island by U.S. Coast Guardsmen.

#BreakingNews @USCGSoutheast reports that all remaining migrants on @DryTortugasNPS, an #updated total of 337 migrants (not including the 90 migrants previously removed by @USCG), were removed from the island & are onboard a @USCG cutter for transfer to Key West, tomorrow. pic.twitter.com/2t8c0Mu4XU

— Homeland Security Task Force – Southeast (HSTF-SE) (@HSTF_Southeast) January 5, 2023

During the first two months of the new Fiscal Year 23, Miami Sector agents apprehended 2,048 migrants. This is more than half of the total apprehensions for all of FY22 when agents took 4,009 migrants into custody, according to the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Nationwide Encounters report.

During the first two months of the previous year, agents only apprehended 336 migrants compared to the 2.048 in the same period this year — a 510 percent increase in this single sector. From the tweets above, it appears the official December numbers will greatly exceed those apprehended in November (1,122).

The last of seven buses full of Cuban migrants leaves Coast Guard Sector Key West pic.twitter.com/iqjdbPWXUd

— David Goodhue (@DavidGoodhue) January 5, 2023

Between August and November 2022, Miami Sector agents apprehended 3,558 migrants. During the entire Fiscal Years 20 and 21 combined, these agents apprehended only 2,333 migrants.