The U.S.-Mexico border east of San Luis will see additional fencing and lighting thanks to new funding from the U.S. Department of Defense.
The Yuma Sector will receive additional 18-foot-high pedestrian fencing, improved roads and new lighting.
That’s because Acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan on Monday authorized the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to begin planning and building the new construction.
Pentagon officials said they will spend up to $1 billion on to support the Department of Homeland Security and Customs and Border Protection in both Yuma and El Paso, Texas. The plan calls for 57 miles of fencing in the two sectors, though it was not specified how many miles of fencing each sector would receive.
Department of Defense officials said the plan is in support of the Feb. 15 national emergency declaration on the southern border.
Border Patrol Agent Jose Garibay told KAWC that the Yuma Sector is already receiving 26 miles of new infrastructure at the border.
