Florida Keys Hit With “Mass Migrant Crisis” After Boat Landings Surge From Caribbean

Last month, the Supreme Court blocked the Biden administration from lifting Title 42, a Trump-era public health order that allows the Customs and Border Protection to turn migrants away at the US-Mexico border to prevent the spread of Covid-19. Even with Title 42 in place, the Biden administration has still managed to stoke a massive humanitarian crisis as the flood of migrants continues – and is now spreading to Florida.

At least 500 migrants believed to be from Cuba, and other Caribbean countries arrived across the Florida Keys over the weekend, in what local officials described as a “mass migration crisis,” according to NYPost. 

Monroe County Sheriff Rick Ramsay’s office said, “the Sheriff’s Office has been assisting federal law enforcement agents with a spike in Cuban refugee arrivals since Saturday and continuing into Monday morning.” 

“Refugee arrivals require a lot of resources from the Sheriff’s Office as we help our federal law enforcement partners ensure the migrants are in good health and safe.

“Residents may see an increased amount of law enforcement and emergency responders throughout the county as we continue to respond to these landings,” Sheriff Rick Ramsay said in a statement posted on Facebook. 

The sheriff’s office reported more than 160 refugees were on boats that landed in the Middle and Upper Keys. More than 300 migrants landed across Marquesas Keys and at Fort Jefferson in the Dry Tortugas. They also said the latest wave of migrant landings is “aggravating the mass migration crisis in the Keys,” adding this whole mess is the result of a “federal failure” that has sparked yet another “humanitarian crisis.” 

#Alert:

During the past 72 hours, #BorderPatrol agents have responded to a high volume of migrant landings in the #FloridaKeys. There is an increased presence of law enforcement & first responders in the area. We appreciate the ongoing support from all of our LE partners. #news pic.twitter.com/Q4wK4YOBO6

— Chief Patrol Agent Walter N. Slosar (@USBPChiefMIP) January 2, 2023

At least one park in the Keys had to close over the weekend because hundreds of migrants arrived on boats. This was the Dry Tortugas National Park, located west of Key West. 

“The closure, which is expected to last several days, is necessary for the safety of visitors and staff because of the resources and space needed to attend to the migrants,” the park tweeted Monday. “Concession-operated ferry and sea plane services are temporarily suspended.”

The closure, which is expected to last several days, is necessary for the safety of visitors and staff because of the resources and space needed to attend to the migrants.

Concession-operated ferry and sea plane services are temporarily suspended.

— Dry Tortugas National Park (@DryTortugasNPS) January 1, 2023

Democrats and Republicans have both criticized the Biden administration’s inability to get a handle on the record surges in illegal immigrants at the US-Mexico border, and now it appears the chaos is spreading to Florida in the form of migrant waves on boats.