Arizona officials begin filling in border wall gaps, say they cannot wait for Biden admin

Arizona state officials sent crews to Yuma this week to begin filling in gaps in the US-Mexico border wall with shipping containers stacked one on top of another.

In spite of the Biden administration’s promise to send its own crews to complete the gaps in the border wall that was left incomplete by the Trump administration, Arizona officials say they cannot wait on the federal government to arrive. Workers began transporting shipping containers that measured 60-feet long and 9 feet tall to the area, where they plan to stack them two-high and top them with razor wire, according to Governor Doug Ducey’s office. The gap measures about 1,000 feet, and is one of three gaps in the wall the state plans on filling with the shipping containers.

“The federal government has committed to doing this, but we cannot wait for their action,” said Ducey spokesperson Katie Ratlief. 

The issue of the border wall gaps has been raised by both Republican and Democratic politicians in Arizona. Democratic Senator Mark Kelly appealed to the White House to close the gaps in the border wall, and this week highlighted his role in getting the administration to sign off on using federal resources to close them. Kelly cited a danger to border patrol officials, and the gaps making it more difficult for the agents to carry out their duties.

Arizona began closing the gaps this week without permission from the federal government. The move comes on the heels of Governor Ducey’s transportation of busloads of migrants from the Southern border to New York City and Washington, DC to make a statement to political leaders there about what some Republicans have called “Biden’s border crisis.”