Army reviews possible chemical mishap in Iraq - Army News | News from Afghanistan & Iraq - Army Times

Army reviews possible chemical mishap in Iraq

Two separate investigations are being launched to determine if soldiers guarding a water treatment plant in Iraq were exposed to a cancer-causing substance in 2003.

The Army plans a 60-day investigation by a panel of personnel and logistics experts to review procedures that may have led members of the Indiana National Guard to be exposed to sodium dichromate at the Qarmat Ali plant in Iraq. Separately, a defense health board also will investigate if any ill effects resulted from the possible exposure.

About 140 soldiers form the 1st Battalion, 152nd Infantry Regiment were deployed to the water plant near Basra in southern Iraq, according to Sen. Evan Bayh, D-Ind., who is urging the creation of a registry of exposed soldiers so they can be tracked to determine if they are suffering ill effects from the deployment.

The Department of Veterans Affairs said about 600 soldiers were in the area and could have been exposed when wind blew the chemical over a large area. The water was not used for drinking, so the only exposure is believed to have been from breathing the substance, according to VA.

In a fact sheet, VA officials said long-term exposure to high amounts of the substance may cause lung cancer and other problems but potential adverse effects of short-term exposure are not clear.

The two investigations were announced Monday by Sen. Byron Dorgan of North Dakota, chairman of the Senate Democratic Policy Committee that has been looking into allegations by former employees of the defense contractor KBR that soldiers and some contractor personnel were exposed to the toxic substance, which is used to prevent rust on pipes.

“The Army’s decision to fully investigate the exposure at Qarmat Ali is overdue,” Dorgan said, noting that Indiana Guard troops who served at the site have been notified of possible exposure and are being monitored.