Work starts on new section of border wall in Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge (Arizona)

Arizona Public Media ^ | 24 July 2020 | Alisa Reznick

[BeauBo]

Montana-based Fisher Sand and Gravel has broken ground on a $1.3 billion project in southeast Arizona.

[BeauBo]

West of Tucson or Nogales, and East of the Tohono O'odham Nation Indian Reservation - about in the middle of the State.

This new start may be a factor in the big jump in the rate of wall construction that we saw last week (about a 50% increase).

Fisher has touted that their patented technique and specialized equipment would enable them to construct border wall system much faster than their competitors.

They teamed with Cat Construction and Holcombe Mixers. Holcombe has said that their special volumetric mixers (as opposed to traditional drum mixers) can pour higher volumes (5 -10 times as much), and better mitigate the faster setting in hot climates.

Looks like Fisher tested the Holcombe equipment in the stretch of private border wall that they built along the Rio Grande River, and are now off to the races with a major border wall contract.

[Kickass Conservative]

Do the Workers on the other side of the Fence live in Mexico?

SARCASM ALERT!

[Paladin2]

https://holcombemixers.com/

[silverleaf]

Trumps Wall from Sea to Shining Sea
Drone video of the entire border works
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=piVd_6VPpyM

[Bookshelf]

The Buenos Aires reserve is a wonderful place that few tourists outside of birders ever visit. Finally, a wall is being built that will end hopefully the trashing of Arivaca Creek and the Buenos Aires by the tens of thousands of illegals that have desecrated the borderland.

[Fresh Wind]

Nice! MAGA!

[waterhill]

I hope that is just a concrete ‘cap’ they are pouring over the footing (that osb form with stakes and kickers at 2’ centers looks awful).

[BeauBo]

“Finally, a wall is being built that will end hopefully the trashing...”

I estimate that the place is going to be dramatically more secure in just the next few months. They only have about five miles of Border frontage.

They are getting thirty footers - the good stuff. Top of the line (including high speed access road, alarms and a powerful surveillance package). I believe that this stretch of Wall System is also going to include the good-looking new black coating.

[Parley Baer]

That is one area of Southern Arizona I have yet to visit. That area is on my next to-do list.

[bkopto]

the Sierra Club's Dan Millis say it could also be one of the most destructive. "This is likely going to be permanent damage," he said.

But Millis doesn't give a rat's rectum about the permanent damage to the citizens and the finances of this country from the illegal invasion.

[BeauBo]

"I hope that is just a concrete ‘cap’ they are pouring over the footing"

The picture is of their "Riverwall" design, on the bank of the Rio Grande. The bollards are set into a deeper trench in the center, and the wider pad (or cap) on top is supposed to stabilize the structure from rocking, in the hurricane winds that the area can get.

Because it is right along the riverbank, they were less concerned with tunneling efforts, and more concerned with storm survival. Their design has been criticized as inadequate for hurricane/flood erosion from the force of the river itself - we will have to see.

Wind loads were a reason that they went with the shorter 18 foot bollards, and did not add the anti-climb plate on top, which would have caught the wind like a sail. The wider base they achieved with the wide "cap" on the concrete foundation, later mated up on the inland sid with an even wider poured concrete patrol road.

In the desert of Arizona, with the thirty foot bollards, they will have a thick and deep reinforced concrete foundation. There they will be working to Government contract specs, and will be responsible for meeting the strict anti-tunneling requirements.

Although it varies by local design (Slope, soil, hydrology), the minimum foundation they put in with bollards is two feet thick and six feet deep, of reinforced high strength concrete. The thirty foot bollards typically have more massive foundations -like eight feet deep. For the ultra high threat San Diego Wall System, 30 foot bollards of the secondary barrier were going into foundations six feet THICK, and down to bedrock in some places.

[Grampa Dave]

Thanks for the update.

The best how to’s and good practices will be used by construction project managers across America to protect stores, businesses and maybe housing development in our new future.

These protective walls will provide improved security for businesses and housing for people in our new America.

[BeauBo]

“But (the Sierra Club’s) Millis doesn’t give a rat’s rectum about the permanent damage to the citizens and the finances of this country from the illegal invasion.”

He doesn’t give a crap about the truth either. They know that they are wildly exaggerating the environmental impact, and they do it consciously, with the intent to mislead and manipulate people.

[BeauBo]

The border wall building is going full speed now. It is blowing the doors off of anything we have ever seen before.

Dozens of crews are now working along the border - typically double shifts - and they are getting better as they go.

Many more contracts are in the works - billions of dollars worth - and many more crews will be joining the effort through the Summer and Fall.

Fisher might just turn out to be the star of them all though, if they turn to be the cause of last week’s big surge in wall construction.

[BeauBo]

“That area is on my next to-do list.”

By Spring, it will be safe and secure, like it has not been in decades.

They are putting in a greatly improved road along with the barrier, but I don’t know if it will be public access.

[thinden]

This is an amazing project!

When completed the wall could be considered one of the “wonders of the Americas” along with the Hoover Dam or Panama Canal, imo

Thanx again, beaubo for keeping us informed on the progress

[little jeremiah]

Thanks for always pinging me to these good news threads. I wish everyone on FR paid attention to the excellent work done on border wall construction.

[BeauBo]

“I wish everyone on FR paid attention to the excellent work done on border wall construction.”

Probably more people read than post.

...and you never know who might be reading.

[bakkentom]

IIRC fisher also has a 30 mile run on the other side of TON also. That would be active first and may have led to the higher mileage.

Just a guess, appreciate all you do.

[PTBAA]

Doesn’t look high enough.

And where are the sharks with fricken’ lasers on their heads?