Construction has started on a portion of Pres. Donald Trump’s border wall in the San Diego area.
The work is the is associated with a contract to construct as much as 14 miles of secondary wall awarded to SLSCO Ltd. using Customs and Border Protection’s (CPB) fiscal year 2018 appropriations. The contractor based in Galveston, TX was awarded a $101 million contract in December, with options for an additional $30 million.
The secondary wall project includes the replacement of existing secondary barrier with a 30 ft. tall steel bollard wall, CPB says in a news release.
“This project is directly north to the San Diego primary fence replacement project that is currently under construction funded with FY 2017 funding. These two important barriers, in combination with a patrol road and technology, create an enforcement zone for the USBP as part of a border wall system. Given the high-density population in the San Diego-Tijuana area, the updated border infrastructure is critically needed.”
CBP says the panels will replace a steel-mesh fence with 30-foot-high steel bollards.
The bollards replace a second layer of barrier that worked like a fortress when it was built about a decade ago but is now often breached with powerful battery-operated saws sold in home improvement stores, The Associated Press reported.
Border barriers, along with appropriate technology, roads and personnel, have significantly reduced illegal entry in SDC, however more work remains to be done, CBP says. In FY 2018, there were approximately 38,000 apprehensions in the San Diego Sector by the US Border Patrol, the agency said.’
A set of prototype border walls will be torn down to make way for the new permanent structure.
