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US border wall construction continues despite covid-19

The United States-Mexico border wall is seen past cactuses in Organ Pipe National Park south of Ajo, Arizona, on February 13, 2020. (AFP photo)

The US border wall construction continues in the state of Arizona despite the spread of coronavirus in the country.

Increase in the number of workers in the area prompted concerns about a faster spread of covid-19, The New York Times reported Tuesday.

The US Army Corps of Engineers claimed in a statement that the agency was following “government and [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention] CDC guidelines” as it continued construction.

“As the guidance changes, decisions will be made as to how contractor employees will be affected,” said Raini Brunson, a spokeswoman for the agency.

The Trump administration has defended the wall as a barrier to stop spread of the virus in the US, a proposal scientifically debunked already.

“This administration’s priority is to get the wall done. The rest of us might as well be damned,” Ajo resident Maria Singleton said, adding that she saw 22 construction trucks one day.

‘Trump, stop congratulating yourself!’

President Donald Trump is coming under unprecedented pressure over the administration’s poor response to the pandemic.

“Trump, since you destroyed the WH unit designed to plan for pandemics like #COVID19, you need to stop being duplicitous about the DPA & get more corps to develop masks, respirators, & everything needed to protect hospital workers trying to save lives. Get your act together,” said California Democratic Rep. Maxine Waters.

Waters further accused the president of mishandling the coronavirus “disaster.”

“Trump, stop congratulating yourself!” she wrote on Twitter. “You’re a failure & you've mishandled this #covid19 disaster! You're not knowledgeable & you don’t know more than experts & generals. Your ignorance & incompetence are appalling & you continue to demonstrate that every time you open your mouth!”

Trump has told American to brace for “very, very painful two weeks.”

“I want every American to be prepared for the hard days that lie ahead," he said at a White House news briefing. "We're going to go through a very tough two weeks, and then hopefully, as the experts are predicting ... we're going to start seeing some real light at the end of the tunnel… But this is going to be a very painful, a very, very painful two weeks."


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