DANIA BEACH, FLA. (WSVN) - Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has signed an executive order activating the Florida National Guard to provide support to local authorities in response to an influx of migrants coming ashore in the Florida Keys.
The governor’s office confirmed DeSantis signed Executive Order 23-03, in a news release issued Friday afternoon.
In a statement, the governor said, “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 also said, “That is why I am activating the National Guard and directing state resources to help alleviate the strain on local resources.”
The release states Florida “will deploy air assets, including airplanes and helicopters from the Florida National Guard, and will bolster Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission marine patrol to support water interdictions and ensure the safety of migrants attempting to reach Florida through the Florida Straits.”
The announcement comes as more Haitian migrants were released from the U.S. Customs and Border Protection office in Dania Beach as family members waited outside.
“We said, ‘Thank God,’ for the long way, they make it here,” said family member Tony Alexandre.
Hours later, 7News spoke with a Cuban migrant shortly after he was released.
“The attention was really good, everything was really good. We have nothing to complain about,” he said through a translator. “I left family, but I believe I can create a future in this great country.”
Hundreds of migrants remained inside the CBP facility, as family members await word on their loved ones, hoping for answers.
Micael Alarcón pinned enlarged pictures of family members to his SUV.
“She’s my sister, Leyda, my brother Jorge, she’s a friend of us, Mailin, and he’s my brother-in-law,” he said as he pointed at four pictures.
Next to the picture of his brother-in-law, Alarcón attached a sign that reads in Spanish, “Have you seen them?”
Alarcón said his loved ones left Cuba on a boat on Dec. 30, and he hasn’t had any contact with them since.
“Yeah, it’s just scary, really scary, because even if you know about the sea, the sea is very betraying. You don’t know how dangerous the sea is,” he said.
In the last 24 hours, authorities said, 90 more Cuban migrants have come ashore in the Florida Keys on rustic and makeshift boats.
7News cameras on Thursday night captured more than half a dozen buses bringing migrants to CBP’s Dania Beach facility from the Keys.
Elizabeth Fórrales couldn’t contain her joy after she spotted her 18-year-old nephew on one of the buses.
“He had not told nobody that he was leaving the country,” she said. “The first thing I said, ‘Thank you, Jesus, thank you, God, for letting him make it.’ Every day, we’ve been praying.”
Migrant landings in the Florida Keys have increased significantly, stretching limited resources in Monroe County.
“The good news is that the state has started to help us. They’re bringing down some highway patrolmen to help us out,” said Monroe County Administrator Roman Gastesi.
Since August, officials with the Homeland Security Task Force – Southeast said, 7,784 migrants have been intercepted at sea, and 4,401 migrants have been detained on land. From Dec. 30 to Monday, 606 migrants were captured at sea, with 812 making it to shore in the Keys.
Meanwhile, family members like Alarcón continue to wait for answers.
“I haven’t seen my sister and my brothers in 17 years. I haven’t had the chance to hug them or nothing,” he said.
Alarcón said all he can do at this point is hope for the best.
“At this point, we only have hope that they’re alive and they’re in there,” he said.
As of Friday evening, there is no word as to whether Alarcón’s family is being processed by CBP. Friday night, another group of migrants is in the process of being released.
Officials advise anyone who believes a family member has been taken into CBP to custody to contact their congressperson, adding they’re not allowed to provide any information for security reasons.
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