Fence at U.S./Mexico border is cut

Sierra Vista Herald
July 12, 2011
by Derek Jordan


NACO — A section of the border fence was damaged east of Naco recently, a series of photos from a resident living near the damaged area shows.

Richard Hodges, who owns land east of Naco, said he was checking his fence line with his wife when he saw a U.S. Border Patrol agent along the fence in a wash, and behind him a large gap in the fence where several of the concrete-filled steel beams had been brought down.

“They took a torch, and right at ground level, cut the pipes. All five of them,” Hodges said. “Then, when they were ready to go through, they took a strap probably, and pulled it backwards. The concrete snapped right at the ground.”

Photos submitted by Hodges show at least 12 of the pipes laying on the ground, creating a space wide enough for a vehicle to pass through, he said.

Border Patrol Agent Colleen Agle confirmed that there was a cut in the fence east of Naco, but could not say when it was first reported or what the dimensions of the cut were.

This was the worst damage to the re-enforced steel fence that Hodges had ever seen, he said.

“I’ve never seen the new (fence) destroyed at all,” he said.

http://www.svherald.com/content/news/2011/07/12/212063