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Five gaps in the U.S.-Mexico border wall were filled with shipping containers topped with concertina wire. Gov. Doug Ducey declared the project complete on Wednesday.
Five gaps in the U.S.-Mexico border wall were filled with shipping containers topped with concertina wire. Gov. Doug Ducey declared the project complete on Wednesday.
In a move that could be seen as alternately as resourceful or haphazard, Gov. Doug Ducey announced Wednesday “a major step forward to secure our border,” adding that five gaps in the border wall with Mexico near Yuma was closed.
Using a barrier of double-stacked and secured shipping containers, 3,820 feet of previously open border has become a unique temporary fix, the rust and yellow-colored rectangles topped with curls of razor wire.
“Five wide open gaps in the border wall near Yuma neighborhoods and businesses are now closed off. In just 11 days, Arizona did the job the federal government has failed to do — and we showed them just how quickly and efficiently the border can be made more secure — if you want to,” Ducey said.
Forty-eight workers from contractor AshBritt, a national rapid-response emergency management and logistics company with clients such as the Department of Defense, installed the 8,800-pound shipping containers and 4,500 feet of concertina wire. Standard shipping containers are 8.5 feet tall, making the total height of the barricade 17 feet, under the height of the permanent border wall, which ranges from 18 to 30 feet.
During his State of the State address in January, Ducey said, “Our southern border has never been more deadly or more dangerous. Meanwhile, the White House and Congress have decided to turn a blind eye. This is a national crisis — and it calls for leadership. … Where Arizona can add physical barriers to the border, we will.”
Dubbed the Yuma Border Barrier Mission, the project launched Aug. 12. after Ducey issued an executive order. The last of 130 shipping containers was installed on Aug. 23, a press release stated. Recent numbers from the U.S. Customs and Border Protection show the Yuma sector had 259,895 migrant encounters between October 2021 and July 2022, a nearly 250 percent increase from the prior year, the release stated, and the highest increase of all border sectors.
Nearly 24,500 of those encounters occurred in July.
“Our Border Barrier Mission is a win for Arizona, our communities, our farmers and our law enforcement,” Ducey said. “But the effort to secure our border is far from complete. Washington must act. Border security is a federal responsibility. They need to fix the border they’ve broken.”
According to the release, the state of Arizona was informed in December 2021 that gaps left open by pause in construction would soon be filled.
“Crossing between points of entry is illegal,” said Tim Roemer, Arizona Department of Homeland Security director and the state’s chief information security officer.
“The cartels have been taking advantage of the gaps in the border wall to surge migrants and overwhelm law enforcement. In 11 days, Arizona has regained more operational control at the U.S.-Mexico border than Biden has in 20 months. Governor Ducey has shown great leadership in how to effectively and efficiently secure the border,” Roemer said.
The first 842-foot gap took 44 containers and four days to fill, the release reported. The second took eight containers to fill 130 feet in a half day. Another four containers filled the third 75-foot gap, which also took a half day. It took four days to fill a 1,200-foot gap with 60 containers. The last gap was 250 feet and was filled with 14 containers over three days.
Social media jumped right in Wednesday after Gov. Doug Ducey posted about the closure of the border wall in Yuma.
Here's a round-up of some comments from his official social media accounts:
“How much money did y’all waste on this mess?”
“Like a 12-foot ladder wouldn't work.....lol”
“How are you measuring 'safer'? The three pigs each had their idea of safer. At best, you’ve built a wall of straw.”
"I don't care what it looks like. I don't care that it's just shipping containers. At least we are trying while the Biden administration has turned their backs on the effects his policies are having on these border states. All the while there are hundreds of miles worth of "wall" lying on the ground somewhere and we aren't allowed to use it. It's everyone for himself these days and if this is the best we can do and if it just prevents one drug smuggler from crossing over, then hallelujah. And if you can do better, then bring all your expertise down to the border and get to work."
"I thought Mexico was going to pay for a wall???"
"Good job, it gives a barrier to defend for now. A temporary solution is better than none at all. Which is all the naysayers have to offer, nothing."
"What an eyesore. People may even start hiding or living in them."
"Thank god Yuma is (finally) safe."
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