TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — A Department of Homeland Security watchdog found that Florida’s controversial “Alligator Alcatraz” immigration detention facility failed to meet multiple federal and state standards, including standards related to humane treatment, housing capacity and access to basic services. The DHS Office of Inspector General said in a report released Monday that detainees at the facility in the Florida Everglades were placed in “small metal enclosures” for as long as nearly two hours. Staff called the spaces “calming areas,” but the inspector general said the practice was highly unusual and inconsistent with humane-treatment standards. Seventy-nine detainees were placed in the enclosures during a six-month period, according to the report, which was based on an unannounced inspection in January. Investigators said they had not observed a similar practice at other Immigration and Customs Enforcement facilities. Gov. Ron DeSantis dismissed the findings during a news conference in Lakeland, saying he had not read the report but arguing that the facility had undergone inspections and was designed to exceed federal requirements. “When they set it up, their goal was not only to meet the federal standards, but to actually exceed the federal standards,” DeSantis said. “That did require more resources.” The inspector general found, however, that facility employees could not clearly explain which standards governed the detention center. The report warned that unclear requirements increase the risk that people in custody will not receive appropriate care. Investigators also found severe overcrowding. As many as 32 detainees were housed in units that should have held no more than 11 people under Florida standards. Detainees reported difficulty accessing clean drinking water and described showers as infested with bugs, according to the report. Some people held at the facility also lacked access to legal materials and telephones, potentially making it harder to find attorneys or communicate with legal representatives. Those barriers are especially significant in immigration detention, where people may be forced to navigate complex proceedings while separated from family and community support. DeSantis announced in June that the facility had officially closed. The center had been built rapidly the previous year as part of Florida’s effort to support President Donald Trump’s immigration enforcement agenda. Even after its closure, the project continues to draw scrutiny over detainee treatment, environmental effects and its cost to taxpayers. The state’s emergency trust fund, which helped finance the facility, could face a $1.5 billion shortfall under a worst-case projection delivered to lawmakers last week. Legislators approved another $240 million for the fund on the same day. The state report also listed 592 unpaid invoices, many tied to detention-center operations.