BROWNSVILLE, TEXAS - JANUARY 7: U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem speaks at a news conference on January 7, 2026 in Brownsville, Texas. Secretary Noem announced that the federal government would be deploying 500 miles of water barriers …
MCALLEN, Texas - The Trump Administration announced this week 500 miles of new floating barriers will be added to the Rio Grande along the southern border of Texas.
According to Kristi Noem, the secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, those new buoys will save the lives of immigrants.
New Texas border buoys
Noem visited the Rio Grande Valley Wednesday to announce the new barrier deployment and take questions from the press.
The 500 miles of floating barrier will be constructed of large buoys, which Noem said measure four to five feet in diameter and as long as fifteen feet. According to the secretary, the buoys were sourced from a family-owned Texas company.
The barrier will be installed and overseen by the U.S. International Boundary and Waters Commission.
Workers provide maintenance on the buoys placed along the Rio Grande border with Mexico to prevent migrants from entering the US in Eagle Pass, Texas, on August 25, 2023. (Photo by SUZANNE CORDEIRO/AFP via Getty Images)
What they're saying:
" They'll create a safer environment for agents on patrol. And securing our waterways not only protects Americans, it saves the lives of illegal aliens. By deterring them from daring to attempt to cross through this treacherous water. Under Joe Biden, nearly 3,000 illegal aliens died attempting to cross into the United States, and an untold number of individuals drowned," Noem said Wednesday.
Previous Texas border buoys
The backstory:
This isn't the first time buoys have been implemented in the Rio Grande in an attempt to prevent border crossings.
In 2023, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott approved similar floating barriers in the river at Eagle Pass as part of Operation Lone Star, the state's attempt to fill in the gaps left by the Biden Administration in Texas' border security.
Texas adds more border buoys to Rio Grande in attempt to stop illegal crossings
New buoys are being placed in the Rio Grande in an attempt to block illegal crossings at the Texas-Mexico border.
The move was quickly challenged by the federal government, with courts making back and forth decisions on whether the buoys could stay.
Since the beginning of Trump's second presidency, Abbott and his contemporaries have been eager to receive federal reimbursement for the billions of taxpayer dollars spent on Operation Lone Star.
The Source: Information in this article comes from a press conference with DHS Sec. Kristi Noem and previous FOX Local reporting.