Outcry as Texas to install ‘buoy barrier’ in Rio Grande to deter border crossings

Rightwing governor Greg Abbott unveils new measures at US-Mexico border condemned by critics as ‘chilling’

The governor of Texas announced the state will install a barrier made of buoys along a section of the Rio Grande where people often wade or swim through the treacherous river from Mexico seeking refuge in the US, as the state committed $5.1bn towards ramping up plans to thwart border crossings.

Greg Abbott said a “new, water-based barrier of buoys” will be placed in the river. At a press conference he showed a line of large red buoys floating in the center of the Rio Grande.