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Hesco baskets to be installed to block Gulf of Mexico oil spill | NOLA.com
Gov. Bobby Jindal's office said Monday the state will erect Hesco baskets along the coast in response to the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, but the Louisiana National Guard does not anticipate a need for more troops to deploy them. About 1,100 troops have been mobilized since last month. Jindal has approval from the Defense Department to mobilize up to 6,000 troops, paid for by the federal government but remaining under state control. Last week, Jindal said he would seek approval for Hesco baskets from the Coast Guard and BP, but that the baskets could "require significant additional" troops. Jindal's office said Hesco baskets will be erected along Grand Isle's northern edge and in Cameron Parish to protect the shorelines from oil. Hesco baskets essentially are wire-mesh and fabric baskets that are filled with sand and widely used by the military in combat zones to provide a bullet-proof buffer around outposts. Soldiers have completed a 785-foot berm at Elmer's Island, but continue to backfill gaps. National Guard engineers and aviators also are filling gaps near Port Fourchon and near Thunder Bayou. Troops also continue to erect a 7-mile tiger dam at Southwest Pass and have staged another seven miles of tiger dam material at Grand Isle, Jindal's office said.