MDC Guaynabo, the Metropolitan Detention Center in Guaynabo, Puerto Rico, holds a notable distinction as the first Bureau of Prisons facility ever built outside the continental United States. It opened in 1993 next to the Fort Buchanan Army installation, about six miles west of San Juan, and unlike most single-purpose FCIs or USPs, it functions as a detention center holding men and women of varying security levels, many of whom are awaiting trial, sentencing, or transfer rather than serving out long-term designations. That mixed, transitional population is one of the more distinctive things about MDC Guaynabo compared to a standard federal prison. The facility also went through a dramatic disruption in September 2017, when Hurricane Maria devastated Puerto Rico's infrastructure; roughly 1,200 inmates had to be evacuated to FCI Yazoo City in Mississippi and other facilities on the mainland while the island recovered, with prisoners gradually returned to Guaynabo over the following months into early 2018. For families, it's worth understanding that MDC Guaynabo tends to have more inmate turnover and shorter average stays than a typical designated FCI, since much of its population is there for court proceedings rather than long-term custody.