SMUGGLERS' TUNNEL IS SECURE, NOT YET FILLED

The drug-smuggling tunnel found two months ago under the Rio Grande is
secure, but it has not been permanently shuttered, federal officials
said Wednesday.

The tunnel, about 130 feet long and 2 feet wide and 2 feet high, was
found June 26 by Border Patrol agents. The tunnel stretches from a
drainage ditch in Juarez to a storm drain in El Paso. The tunnel is
adjacent to the Bridge of the Americas.

U.S. Border Patrol Agent Ramiro Cordero said details of how the tunnel
will be permanently closed or blocked will be available next week. The
Border Patrol is responsible for securing the tunnel.

"It is under constant surveillance right now," Cordero said. "As to
how it will be filled in or closed or taken care, we do not know yet."

Sally Spener, spokeswoman for the U.S. International Boundary and
Water Commission, said the tunnel's opening is on the concrete canal
lining of the Rio Grande that was built by the commission. Water
commission engineers have ruled the canal is stable.

"It has to get filled in, but from an engineering standpoint, there is
no urgency to it," she said.

The tunnel was found by agents after they became suspicious of noises
coming from the area. Agents said they used electronic devices to find
the tunnel.

The small, crudely made tunnel was just wide enough for people to
crawl from Mexico into the U.S. Agents discovered 200 pounds of
marijuana inside and arrested a 17-year-old Mexican boy found nearby.

It is the first smuggling tunnel found in El Paso.