DailyMail.com has obtained a drone’s view of the fully completed border wall prototypes that are vying to be part of Trump’s new Mexican border wall.
The companies that have totally completed their imposing structures so far are: Maryland’s ETLA North America Inc, two completed from Caddell Construction Co, LLC, of Alabama, a wall by Texas Sterling Construction Co. of Houston and a wall completed by Arizona’s Fisher Sand & Gravel which was among the first to complete construction of it’s prototype.
Next to Fisher Sand & Gravel’s structure is the outline of a wall to be built by KWR Construction of Sierra Vista of Arizona.
All eight wall prototypes are nearly completed on the US border of Mexico
Maryland’s ETLA North America Inc is an Israeli defense company. This wall by ETLA uses a concrete at the base with the top two-thirds featuring blue metal panels
Caddell Construction Co, LLC, of Montgomery, Alabama created two walls, this one features metal bars for the first half, narrowly spaced and resembling the bollard-style fencing which allows CBP to see to the otherside, the top half has solid concrete panels
Caddell Construction Co, LLC, of Montgomery, Alabama was awarded a contract for this concrete structure with a slope on the US side and a flat surface towards the Mexican border
Arizona’s Fisher Sand & Gravel structure was among the first to be completed with concrete blending with the desert it sits in
Texas Sterling Construction Co. of Houston built this prototype of concrete with fencing at the top pointing towards Mexico
As of now the two prototypes that sit furthest west by W. G. Yates & Sons Construction Company Mississippi are still under construction- one partially finished while the other is now a base foundation.
Of the eight contracts doled out in the CBP search they awarded four to be made of concrete and four to be made of material other than concrete.
The walls all have striking features ranging from slats that allow CBP to see through to the other side, another has a slope on the US side and a completely straight wall facing Mexico, while another has a fence jutting over its Mexican side, and yet another has blue metal on its top portion.
The wall prototypes are all expected to be fully erected by the end of the month and are being constructed in the California desert, near San Diego abutting the run down neighborhood of Tijuana, Mexico.
The requirements to adhere to Trump’s vision call for ‘a fence that is impenetrable, it’s unscalable,’ said Roy Villareal, acting chief patrol agent of the San Diego border sector. ‘They can’t dig under it. They can’t cut through it.
Customs and Border Protection may pick several winners, or none. Villarreal said another contractor will evaluate each model, which will be up to 30 feet high and 30 feet long.
Mekanie Avilar Rodriguez, 7, plays with her doll on the existing border wall as border wall prototypes being built in San Diego
This is a full shot of how the eight walls are starting to stack up with an empty spot second from right and two at the farthest end in the middle of construction
This graphic shows how President Donald Trump (pictured centre right) is planning the U.S.A./Mexico wall. Prototypes are being built in the California desert
‘It may not result in a singular winner. It may be a combination of designs being implemented,’ Villarreal told reporters next to existing border fencing.
Construction began at the end of September, after being stalled three months when firms that didn’t win contracts protested.
Announcing the start of construction in September Vitiello, said in a statement: ‘We are committed to securing our border and that includes constructing border walls.’
‘Our multi-pronged strategy to ensure the safety and security of the American people includes barriers, infrastructure, technology and people.’
The cost of eight contracts ranges from $320,000 to $480,000. CBP has already appropriated the funds to pay for them.
Funding to extend the current wall beyond its distance of 654 miles, however is in doubt.
A man peeks through a hole in the existing border wall from the Mexican side at several border wall prototypes being built in San Diego
Democrats have balked at Trump’s $1.6 billion request to replace 14 miles in San Diego and build 60 miles in Texas’ Rio Grande Valley, the busiest corridor for illegal crossings.
Most of the prototypes seemed to be concrete-based, contradicting President Trump’s original comments that the wall would be see through.
CBP said construction must be completed within 30 days. The agency will then take a few weeks to test them, determining how quickly and easily the prototype can be breached, and analyzing how effectively the companies incorporated anti-climbing mechanisms, see-through capabilities and other security features.
Trump’s proposed border wall with Mexico has been a hard and fast campaign pledge. Building the eight prototypes has hit a milestone toward that pledge.
Trump still maintains that Mexicans will pay for the wall eventually, but says American taxpayers will front the cost until they do.
The prototype building process will last about three more weeks, CBP said. After that, the agency may pick several winners, or none.