Controlled explosions expected in Mount Cristo Rey area for construction of new border wall

SUNLAND PARK, New Mexico (KVIA) -- The U.S. federal government is about to begin construction of a new border wall along the U.S.-Mexico border in the Mount Cristo Rey area of ​​Sunland Park, New Mexico.

According to the El Paso Sector Border Patrol and the Ciudad Juárez Civil Protection Department, controlled detonations are expected to begin today to prepare the ground and lay the foundation for this new border wall.

ABC-7 reported last summer that approximately 1.3 kilometers of new border barrier were approved for the Sunland Park area, south of the mountain. The goal of this new wall in that area is to deter illegal immigration into the United States further, as this section of the border has lacked a wall for years and has been a very active area for migrant crossings, according to Border Patrol.

The controlled blasts are expected to begin around noon on Tuesday.

More updates in later newscasts.