Government approves first "virtual" border fence

Last Update: 7:07 pm



WASHINGTON (AP) - The government is giving the thumbs up to a 28-mile "virtual" fence along the U.S.-Mexico border in Arizona.

The U.S. is hoping to catch people illegally sneaking over the border with a system of radar and surveillance cameras. The Bush administration is also planning to install the technology in Texas and other parts of Arizona.

The techno-fence, known as Project 28, includes 98-foot unmanned surveillance towers equipped with radar, sensors and cameras that can tell a person from a cow 10 miles away. Software glitches had gotten in the way, but Boeing has since smoothed things out. Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff plans to announce his approval of the project tomorrow.

It's part of a broader plan to shore up the leaky Southwest border with physical barriers and technology.

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