National Guard completes shoreline barrier in Louisiana

By Sgt. Michael L. OwensJune 8, 2010

Chinook lift
A National Guard Soldier prepares to hook a sling between an empty fuel tank and a CH-47 Chinook helicopter at Southwest Pass just off the coast of Venice, La., June 7, 2010. The 1023rd completed construction of a Tiger Dam water diversion system on ... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

National Guard completes shoreline barrier near Venice

BATON ROUGE, La. (Army News Service, June 8, 2010) - The Louisiana National Guard completed the construction of a 5-3/4 mile Tiger Dam shoreline protection system near Venice, La., in the Southwest Pass of the Mississippi River Delta.

The 1023rd, headquartered in Oak Grove, La., constructed the barrier across a beach in the Southwest Pass as a secondary line of defense to the boom line which will protect the natural marshlands from the encroaching oil of the Deepwater Horizon rig.

The 1st Battalion of the 244th Aviation Regiment based in Hammond, La., airlifted Soldiers in and out of the worksite daily due to the unit's remote location.

All of the inflatable barrier material and equipment had to be sling loaded and dropped in place by the Blackhawks.

This water diversion system which is normally used for flood control, replaces sandbags and is comprised of a series of interlocking flexible tubes that are inflated with water to form a temporary dam or levee.

As work crews laid out the Tiger Dam material for assembly and inflation, other crews worked pumps to fill the tubular sections with water.

Once completed, the 1023rd worked with the Florida National Guard's 2nd Battalion, 111th Aviation Regiment, to transport equipment from the southwest pass to Venice, La.

Sgt. Daniel E. Caillouet of the 1023rd said the unit would return all the equipment to its home base for cleaning and maintenance.

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