Hours after Donald Trump was sworn in as the 47th President of the United States orders were sent to the Army and Marines to deploy resources to the Southwestern United States – Trump had just declared a national emergency along the border.
While the make-up of Trump’s Administration was taking shape officials at Customs and Border Protection were working to implement a strategy to stop, or at the very least slow, illegal migration into the United States. And while specifics were not known the border patrol’s San Diego sector knew what needed to be done immediately, fortify the border wall and put more ‘boots on the ground’ – enter soldiers from the Army and Marines from Camp Pendleton.
KNX News was recently invited to an exclusive behind the scenes look at the progress of Joint Task Force-Southern Border along the California/Mexico border. Upon arrival we were escorted to a staging area a few miles east of the San Ysidro Port of Entry. After a short briefing a massive steel gate was opened, and we were allowed to walk into the zone between the two steel fences – the primary fence is 18 feet high whereas the secondary fence is 30 feet high. The zone between them is 100 to 200 yards.
Want to get caught up on what's happening in SoCal every weekday afternoon? Click to follow The L.A. Local wherever you get podcasts.
Marine Lt. Colonel Tyrone Barrion says he grew up in the San Diego area and is very familiar with the territory. He leads a team of Marines from Camp Pendleton who are installing concertina wire on the border wall starting at the Pacific Ocean and going 20-miles inland to the most remote and perilous areas of the San Diego sector. Army Lt Colonel Phillip Mason says his soldiers are also providing more visual presence along the border including 24-hour surveillance on the ground. Approximately 750 Marines and soldiers have been deployed to the San Diego sector to support the nearly 1,900 full-time agents.
The acting border chief of the San Diego sector, Jeffrey Stalnaker, said the new security measures have greatly reduced illegal migration. In March of 2024, he said agents were apprehending between 1,200 to 1,400 migrants per day. As of the week of March 17th, the average has dropped to 30 per day. Stalnaker says they are half way through the new fiscal year and overall apprehensions are already down 70% from the same time last fiscal year.
Officials say at the end of the mission they will reassess the results and determine
whether to extend the current mission or create a new strategy.
Follow KNX News 97.1 FM
Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | TikTok