Local Guardsmen assist officials with levee patrols

By Command Sgt. Maj. Rufus Jones, 528th Engineer Battalion senior enlisted advisor

BATON ROUGE, La. – The Louisiana National Guard’s 528th Engineer Battalion, headquartered in Monroe, spent nearly three weeks in the 5th Levee District to help local, state and federal officials monitor the nearly 200 mile-long levee system, Jan. 4 – 22.

The Soldiers were ordered to state active duty in advance of the rising water levels arriving in Louisiana to assist the parishes with combatting potential flooding or levee compromises. During the operation, the Soldiers drove more than 4,400 miles and monitored a total of 670 water boils, 17 seepages and 33 levee slides in East Carroll, Tensas, Concordia and Madison parishes. The area was broken up into sectors – Tallulah, St. Joseph and Vidalia and required 24-hour monitoring to alert local officials and the US Army Corps of Engineers to any potentially dangerous sand boils.

Lt. Col. Greg St. Romain, commander of the 528th Eng. Bn., said he knows the work his Soldiers did made a difference in the flood fight to the state and the local communities.

“I cannot be more proud of these soldiers.  If there is a threat to our citizens of this great state the Soldiers of this battalion are ready and trained to conduct any mission needed to protect our neighbors, said St. Romain. “From patrols to engineer work, these soldiers are the best.”

Sand boils are caused by a difference in pressure on the two sides of the levee. They can cause erosion in the levee by creating a pipe through the levee where sand and soil moves through it with the water.

Spc. Demarius Griffin of Farmerville, spent days patrolling the levees in search of a boil. When USACE confirmed Griffin’s first find, the young Soldier could not have been more excited, asking if he could name it.

“I’m coming back to check on you!” Griffin shouted as they left to check the next boil.