Construction crews on Monday began putting a floating border barrier in place near Eagle Pass, Texas, with the project expected to deter large numbers of illegal migrant border crossings in the area.
Lt. Chris Olivarez, spokesman for the Texas Department of Public Safety, tweeted videos showing construction crews beginning to install segments of floating buoys that are intended to "deter unlawful crossings & human smuggling," and "prevent the loss of life."
According to Breitbart News, the buoys are being situated in an area where large numbers of migrants illegally cross into the United States and where several recently drowned.
Four migrants drowned while attempting to cross the Rio Grande in three separate incidents over 48 hours in the area where the new barrier is being constructed. Texas DPS Tactical Marine Unit troopers and Florida Fish and Wildlife wardens recovered the bodies, according to Breitbart.
The buoys reportedly began arriving in Eagle Pass on Friday and were met by a small group of protestors made up of local residents and others who traveled there from Laredo, Texas.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott ordered the barrier installed and the Texas Legislature authorized the funds used for the project.
With the scorching Texas temperatures not deterring migrants crossing from Piedras Negras, Coahuila, Mexico, into the Eagle Pass area, the buoys are the latest attempt to secure the U.S.-Mexico border following record numbers of migrants who have crossed into the United States since President Joe Biden took office.
Abbott and other Republicans have denounced Biden for terminating Trump-era policies that allowed U.S. Customs and Border Protection to send illegal immigrants back to Mexico.
"Washington, D.C., has failed to do [its] job to secure the border," Abbott said when announcing the marine barrier last month. "As a result, Texas has had to take unprecedented steps and [respond] to the crisis caused by the [Biden] administration on the border."