Soldiers Want Answers After Radiation Contamination In Iraq
NY1: Search: " Nov 11, 2005 On NY1 Now: News
Area Soldiers Want Answers After Claims Of Radiation Contamination In Iraq
Soldiers from New York City continue to put pressure on the U.S. military after they say they were contaminated with radiation while fighting in Iraq. NY1's Dean Meminger has their story.
More elected officials are getting in line to help soldiers in their battle against their own military. Senator Charles Schumer is now trying to help soldiers who say they were contaminated with radioactive dust while in Iraq.
?They acquire potential illness through no fault of their own, and the Army tries to stonewall them. That's not the American way,? Schumer said this week.
Several members of the National Guard?s 442nd Military Police Company say they feel betrayed by the Army. After serving in the war, they say they are now contaminated with depleted uranium.
DU is a slightly radioactive heavy metal left over in the process of creating nuclear fuel and used in tank armor and artillery. But when it's hit or explodes, soldiers can get wounded by radioactive shrapnel or breathe in radioactive particles.
These soldiers say they breathed in a lot of DU because of where the set up camp in Iraq.
?We stayed in areas that were actually bombed out already, like abandoned buildings,? says Sgt. Agustin Matos. ?We basically took shelter anywhere that we could find shelter from the sun or sandstorms.?
Many of the soldiers are members of the city's Police, Fire and Correction departments. The men say they never heard of depleted uranium, and were not told about it by the military.
?There were supposed to be procedures in place,? said Sgt. Herbert Reed. ?We were supposed to be shown films and we were supposed to be given a certain mask to wear so that possibly we could prevent inhaling particles of depleted uranium, and none of that was done.?
?We would go and say, ?This hurts and that hurts,? or, ?We're feeling this or that,? and they would say, ?Oh, it?s psychosomatic - it's in your head,? said Sgt. Jerry Ogeda.
The soldiers say they've had no choice but to go public with their situation. They obtained independent examinations, and out of nine soldiers tested, four say they have DU contamination.
The soldiers say military officials have told them not to be concerned about DU. Frightened about their situation, the soldiers did research on the Internet and said they found plenty of reasons to be concerned.
Dr. Eric Braverman of the Path Foundation agrees. He has written about the effects of depleted uranium exposure.
?Studies suggest that you get fatigue, headache, sexual dysfunction ? like impotence - depression, anxiety, confusion, and it basically makes you feel that you are burned out and depressed,? said Dr. Braverman. ?The good news is that there may be some antidotes to these symptoms.?
These men say the military has now agreed to test all soldiers who think they may be contaminated with depleted uranium. This week the soldiers started supplying urine samples to be tested. They hope the military performs those tests correctly.
Results should be back within a month.
- Dean Meminger"
Area Soldiers Want Answers After Claims Of Radiation Contamination In Iraq
Soldiers from New York City continue to put pressure on the U.S. military after they say they were contaminated with radiation while fighting in Iraq. NY1's Dean Meminger has their story.
More elected officials are getting in line to help soldiers in their battle against their own military. Senator Charles Schumer is now trying to help soldiers who say they were contaminated with radioactive dust while in Iraq.
?They acquire potential illness through no fault of their own, and the Army tries to stonewall them. That's not the American way,? Schumer said this week.
Several members of the National Guard?s 442nd Military Police Company say they feel betrayed by the Army. After serving in the war, they say they are now contaminated with depleted uranium.
DU is a slightly radioactive heavy metal left over in the process of creating nuclear fuel and used in tank armor and artillery. But when it's hit or explodes, soldiers can get wounded by radioactive shrapnel or breathe in radioactive particles.
These soldiers say they breathed in a lot of DU because of where the set up camp in Iraq.
?We stayed in areas that were actually bombed out already, like abandoned buildings,? says Sgt. Agustin Matos. ?We basically took shelter anywhere that we could find shelter from the sun or sandstorms.?
Many of the soldiers are members of the city's Police, Fire and Correction departments. The men say they never heard of depleted uranium, and were not told about it by the military.
?There were supposed to be procedures in place,? said Sgt. Herbert Reed. ?We were supposed to be shown films and we were supposed to be given a certain mask to wear so that possibly we could prevent inhaling particles of depleted uranium, and none of that was done.?
?We would go and say, ?This hurts and that hurts,? or, ?We're feeling this or that,? and they would say, ?Oh, it?s psychosomatic - it's in your head,? said Sgt. Jerry Ogeda.
The soldiers say they've had no choice but to go public with their situation. They obtained independent examinations, and out of nine soldiers tested, four say they have DU contamination.
The soldiers say military officials have told them not to be concerned about DU. Frightened about their situation, the soldiers did research on the Internet and said they found plenty of reasons to be concerned.
Dr. Eric Braverman of the Path Foundation agrees. He has written about the effects of depleted uranium exposure.
?Studies suggest that you get fatigue, headache, sexual dysfunction ? like impotence - depression, anxiety, confusion, and it basically makes you feel that you are burned out and depressed,? said Dr. Braverman. ?The good news is that there may be some antidotes to these symptoms.?
These men say the military has now agreed to test all soldiers who think they may be contaminated with depleted uranium. This week the soldiers started supplying urine samples to be tested. They hope the military performs those tests correctly.
Results should be back within a month.
- Dean Meminger"
posted by Greta Jane at Friday, November 11, 2005
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