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October 8, 2008 3:19:28 AM CDT

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Shoddy Electrical Work Killing US Troops in Iraq

Posted Jul 18, 08 4:00 AM CDT in Business,  World 

(Newser) – Shoddy electrical work by private contractors is making Iraq an even deadlier place for US troops, reports the New York Times. At least 13 troops have died from electrocution and many more have been injured. Others have perished in electrical fires. The problem is worse than the Pentagon has acknowledged, with 283 fires sparked at military installations in a 6-month period, according to Army documents.

Communications between the Pentagon and contractor KBR reveal officials were aware of a problem but did little to address it before the family of a Green Beret electrocuted in a shower pushed for answers. KBR, overwhelmed by the huge scale of the work, turned over electrical jobs on buildings used by the US military to subcontractors that hired unskilled workers for a few dollars a day.

Source New York Times

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This undated photo, shows Staff Sgt. Ryan Maseth. Ryan, 24, was electrocuted in his shower in Iraq on Jan. 2, 2008.   (AP Photo)
An Iraqi boy stands next to hundreds of electrical cables leading to a generator in the Azamiyah neighborhood in north Baghdad, Iraq, Wednesday, Feb. 13, 2008.   (AP Photo/Anja Niedringhaus)
An Iraqi man grapples with a tangle of power lines in Baghdad. Electrical work on US military buildings in Iraq is reported to have been carried out by low-paid unskilled workers.   (Getty Images)
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Iraq  • US military  • Iraq contractors  • military bases  • KBR  • electrical shocks  • electrocution


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