Friday, October 20, 2017
Associated Press
SAN DIEGO
The last two of eight prototypes for President Donald Trump’s proposed border wall took shape Thursday at a construction site in San Diego.
The prototypes form a tightly packed row of imposing concrete and metal panels, including one with sharp metal edges on top. Another has a surface resembling an expensive brick driveway.
Companies have until Thursday to finish the models but Border Patrol spokesman Theron Francisco said the last two came into profile, with crews installing a corrugated metal surface on the eighth model on a dirt lot just a few steps from homes in Tijuana, Mexico.
As the crews worked, three men and two women, one carrying a large red purse, jumped a short rusted fence from Tijuana into the construction site and were immediately stopped by agents on horseback.
Francisco said there have been four or five other illegal crossing attempts at the site since work began Sept. 26.
The models, which cost the government up to $500,000 each, were spaced 30 feet apart. Bidding guidelines call for the prototypes to stand between 18 and 30 feet high and be able to withstand at least an hour of punishment from a sledgehammer, pickaxe, torch, chisel or battery-operated tools.
Features also should prevent the use of climbing aids such as grappling hooks, and the segments must be “aesthetically pleasing” when viewed from the U.S. side.
The administration hasn’t said how many winners it will pick or whether Trump will weigh in himself.