Expedited Border Wall Construction in South Texas Announced by Trump Admin

The Trump Administration announced plans to expedite the construction of new border wall gates along the Texas border in the Rio Grande Valley Sector. The gates will secure gaps in the physical barriers along the Rio Grande River border with Mexico.

The Department of Homeland Security issued a waiver to allow the expedited construction of gates. The gates are designed to close areas of the wall that were previously left open along the Rio Grande River. Officials published the waiver on Wednesday, according to the Department of Homeland Security.

The action comes in response to the massive numbers of migrants crossing the border in the Rio Grande Valley Sector. The sector is consistently apprehending the largest numbers of migrants illegally crossing the border — particularly family units and unaccompanied minors.

During August, Border Patrol agents apprehended 37,544 migrants who illegally crossed the border between ports of entry. This is up from 22,293 in August 2017 — an increase of more than 68 percent, according to the August Southwest Border Migration Report.

In the Rio Grande Valley Sector, Border Patrol agents apprehended 16,752 migrants including 7,094 Family Unit Aliens (FMUA) and 2,234 Unaccompanied Alien Children (UAC) in August, officials reported. This is up from 13,241 total apprehensions in July that included 5,215 FMUAs and 1,929 UACs.

In April, Los Indios, Texas, Mayor Rick Cavasos spoke out in support of the border wall and called for closing the gaps in the wall near his community, Breitbart Texas reported. His comments came shortly after President Donald Trump and Texas Governor Greg Abbott announced the deployment of additional National Guard troops to the area to help secure the border.

Breitbart Texas has observed multiple gaps in the border wall throughout this area. Often times, the gaps are guarded by stationary or patrolling agents or they are monitored by electronic means. Frequently they are unguarded.