Pressure mounting on Biden administration to fix levee breaches in South Texas

McALLEN, Texas (Border Report) -- A resolution passed by Hidalgo County Commissioners this week asking for local congressmen to put pressure on the Biden administration to fix the giant breaches in the border levee wall seems to be heard in Washington.

Hidalgo County leans on feds to fill in levee breaches left behind when border wall construction ceased

On Wednesday, U.S. Rep. Vicente Gonzalez, a Democrat from McAllen, Texas, told Border Report that he has spoken with Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas asking them to urgently remedy the truck-sized gaps before hurricane season starts on June 1.

Gonzalez also said he has sent a letter to President Joe Biden urging his administration mobilize contractors and begin repairs as soon as possible.

South Texas congressman requests meeting with Biden on breaches in border levee

A 25-foot-tall earthen levee is seen on April 14, 2021, in Pamlview, Texas, with a giant cut through it where border wall construction crews used to drive heavy equipment through until construction was halted by the Biden administration. (Border Report Photo/Sandra Sanchez)

Gonzalez told Border Report that a timeframe given by DHS officials of up to nine months for repairs to be completed is "unacceptable," and he says repairs need to start now.

Army Corps of Engineers tells officials breaches in border levee can’t be fixed without OK from DHS

"That is a huge issue and we need to fill in what’s left open," Gonzalez said Wednesday after attending the McAllen mayor's State of the City address at the McAllen Convention Center.

"I’ve been in communication with both the folks who can do it to get it done and the Army Corps of Engineers and we’re hoping that we can get a meeting the president soon," he said.

"It’s just a bunch of mud and dirt that needs to fill in those gaps and we need to get it done before hurricane season," Gonzalez said. "They’re well informed of it. I don’t know if they think this is not a major issue. It is to me and my district and I expect it to be resolved soon."

On Tuesday afternoon, Hidalgo County Commissioners unanimously passed a resolution asking the Biden administration to fix the levee, and asking local congressmen who represent this South Texas border region to put pressure on President Joe Biden.

U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar, a Democrat who also represents South Texas, says he also has spoken with Mayorkas and has asked the Biden administration to authorize DHS officials to call back border wall contractors and to start repairs on the 25-foot-tall earthen border wall that protects the delta region from the Rio Grande.