President Donald Trump shared a tip for migrants sent to the "Alligator Alcatraz" detention camp in the Florida Everglades, suggesting that detainees who manage to escape will have a better chance of outrunning alligators if they weave rather than run in a straight line.
As Trump boarded the helicopter destined to visit the site recently designated for the new detention facility, Fox News' Peter Doocy asked about whether the idea behind placing the prison in the Everglades was to let alligators eat escapees.
"I guess that's the concept," Trump conceded with a smirk. "This is not a nice business."
Doocy: With Alliagator Alcatraz, is the idea that if some illegal immigrant escapes, they just get eaten by an alligator?
— Acyn (@Acyn) July 1, 2025
Trump: I guess that's the concept. Snakes are fast but alligators— we're going to teach them how to run away from an alligator. Don't run in a straight line,... pic.twitter.com/xnGTUTALDr
"Snakes go fast but alligators — we're going to teach them how to run away from an alligator, okay, if they escape prison," Trump ad libbed. "How to run away: Don't run in a straight line, run like this," he said, illustrating a wave with his hand.
"And you know what? Your chances go up about 1%," he added, discouraging would-be escapees. "Not a good day."
The comments come as the federal government collaborates with Florida to open a 5,000-bed facility on former airfield land surrounded by Everglades swamps brimming with alligators and pythons.
Critics, including human rights groups and local tribal leaders, have condemned the site as inhumane, environmentally destructive, and dystopian.
Supporters, including Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, argue the natural terrain creates a "low-cost" perimeter to deter would-be escapees.
Wildlife experts stress that anyone who finds themselves fleeing an alligator should run away as quickly as possible — in a straight line. Running in a zig zag as an alligator evasion technique is a popular myth, based on the false premise that alligators cannot turn quickly. Alligators clock an average land speed of 19 mph, but only for short distances. Because gators are unlikely to pursue any prey beyond several yards, the best bet at escape is to maximize distance as quickly as possible.
"You're more likely to be attacked by a dog or even killed by a cow than have an encounter, a negative one, with an alligator," biologist Corbin Maxey, who keeps pet alligators, told Business Insider. However, the odds of an encounter are much higher in the Florida Everglades, which is home to an estimated 200,000+ alligators, according to Gator Park.
Even if running in a zig zag was a viable gator evasion technique — which to be clear, it's not — the threat of snake and insect bites remain ever present at "Alligator Alcatraz."
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