Background

Previous stories about hexavalent chromium contamination

Five current and former Oregon Army National Guard soldiers filed suit Monday against a war contractor that they say knowingly exposed them to a cancer-causing chemical in Iraq.

The suit alleges that managers from Kellogg, Brown & Root, or KBR, of Houston knew before the Oregon Guard arrived at the Qarmat Ali water treatment plant in May 2003 that the site was contaminated by hexavalent chromium, a highly toxic and long-identified carcinogen.

The plaintiffs allege the company either failed to do the required testing a month before the Guard arrived or destroyed the records to conceal the contamination. KBR also discounted soldiers' and civilians' bloody noses and other symptoms of exposure as sand allergies.

The Oregon Guard had been assigned to protect civilian employees working at the treatment plant, a key component of Iraqi oil production.

In a written statement Monday, KBR director of communications Heather L. Browne said the company appropriately notified the Army Corps of Engineers, which oversaw the contractor's work.

"KBR has provided the results of environmental testing and assessments to the U.S. Military and will continue to fully cooperate with the government on this issue," she wrote. "KBR did not knowingly harm troops."

According to the suit filed in U.S. District Court in Portland, KBR's health safety manager in southern Iraq knew in May 2003 the plant was contaminated with sodium dichromate, a corrosion fighter that is almost pure hexavalent chromium. (The military believes Saddam loyalists opened and scattered bags of it as they fled the plant.) Plaintiffs allege that KBR managers repeatedly told U.S. and British soldiers there was no danger, even after blood tests on civilian workers later confirmed elevated chromium levels.

The suit says the five plaintiffs developed symptoms of hexavalent chromium poisoning and continue to suffer breathing problems, stomach and esophageal ulcers and headaches, and face a greater risk of cancer and impact on their offspring. The Oregon troops served with the 1st Battalion, 162nd Infantry Division that rotated through duties guarding civilians at Qarmat Ali from April to June 2003.

Four of the plaintiffs -- Larry Roberta, of Aumsville, Scott Ashby of Lake Oswego. Rocky Bixby of Hillsboro and Matthew Hadley of Aloha -- completed their Guard obligation and are civilians. Capt. Charles Ellis of Junction City remains with the Guard and is deploying to Iraq with the 41st Infantry Brigade in July.

Last month, Roberta and Ashby testified before the Oregon Legislature, which is considering a bill to set up a small fund to help exposed soldiers who develop cancer.

Attorneys for the soldiers, David Sugerman of Portland and Michael Doyle of Houston, said they expect several West Virginia National Guard members who served at the Iraqi water plant to file a similar suit. Last year, 16 Indiana National Guard members who replaced the Oregon troops at Qarmat Ali and 10 civilian contractors who worked at the facility also sued KBR. Under federal rules, civilians working on military bases are limited in their ability to sue employers, and that case has been in a confidential arbitration.

Since news coverage by The Oregonian in January, more than two dozen Oregon veterans have asked to be placed on a registry and more than a dozen have reported health issues to the National Guard or VA, mostly breathing problems.

The Oregon Army National Guard is still asking soldiers who may have served with the 1-162 to contact the Guard at 503-584-2285 or the Portland Veterans Administration at 800-949-1004, ext. 52852, for more information on registering their exposure.

-- Julie Sullivan; juliesullivan@news.oregonian.com