A dredging operation in the Chandeleur Islands Saturday, June 19, 2010, to build protective berms against the BP / Gulf oil spill. JOHN MCCUSKER / THE TIMES-PICAYUNE

Published: Thursday, July 01, 2010, 3:18 PM  High tides from Hurricane Alex destroyed 1,000 feet of a sand wall the Louisiana National Guard built in Cameron Parish as a barrier against oil from the BP well. A tide 3 feet above normal seeped through the barriers Wednesday and washed the sand away, according to a report from KPLC-TV. Alex came ashore Wednesday night south of Brownsville, Texas. Its northern edge lashed the Louisiana coast. Clifton Hebert of the Cameron Parish Office of Emergency Preparedness said it takes weeks for sand to compact in fabric-lined wire mesh baskets. The National Guard had built about 2½ miles of a planned 8-mile barrier. Cameron is in western Louisiana at the Texas border. No oil from the BP well has been reported there. The parish has some of the state’s few recreational beaches.

High tides in Cameron destroy sand wall barrier erected against Gulf oil spill