Anatomy of a Drug Tunnel

Rails, elevators and more...

It's widely suspected that a lot of the drugs smuggled into the United States arrive by truck, ushered in past guards with the special sanction of the darker elements within our government. But not all of the drugs in the country arrive by truck, or with government blessing. Behind trucks, a lot of drugs enters the USA via a tunnel.

LOS ANGELES, CA (California Network) -- The Mexican drug cartels dig sophisticated tunnels to smuggle their goods into the United States. Electricity, rails and ladders are standard equipment. More advanced tunnels are large enough to stand and walk, though. They can even be ventilated for safety and comfort.

Tunnels begin in houses on the southern side of the border, often concealed in the floor or behind objects like fireplaces. It takes a trained eye to notice where a tunnel could start in a house. From there, they can extend between twenty and seventy feet down below ground. They run up to a half-mile in length before resurfacing under another house in San Diego.

The tunnels are usually equipped with rails which allow large quantities of drugs to be moved by cart. They systems are safe and efficient, built by expert engineers who are well paid or forced to do the job. The real danger is back on the surface where the shipments must be broken up and smuggled out of houses without alerting neighbors.

The longest drug tunnel stretches for more than 800 yards and is equipped with rails, electricity, ventilation and even an elevator that was housed in a closet.

Over 100 tunnels have been discovered in the past, and these may only be a fraction of all that exist. Nobody knows how much drugs have entered the country by tunnel.

These systems are very lucrative, so much so that cartels have even reopened known tunnels that were previously sealed by authorities.

The U.S. government is working on technology to detect underground tunnels. Presently, we can locate small, dense objects like landmines quite easily. And we can detect massive underground formations as well. But tunnels are deep and small in profile, so detecting them requires much more sensitive equipment.

Israel has developed a secret system known as "Hourglass" which they use to detect terrorist tunnels. The U.S. has partnered with Israel and last year approved a $120 million grant to help develop the technology. Israel will use theirs to hunt terrorists, and the U.S. will hunt drug traffickers.

In the meantime, human intelligence seems to be the best means of detecting these tunnels. Unusual activity in front of a house, fleeing criminals making their way back to one place and disappearing. Strangers appearing out of nowhere.

Of course, tunnels are expensive and once detected, they are sealed. They are difficult to reopen. But traffickers have other tools at their disposal. Tunnels will continue to be used for a long time to come, but the next frontier will be above the ground, not in it, as cartels begin developing drones to deliver their cargoes by air.