Skip to: Content
Skip to: Site Navigation
Skip to: Search
SATURDAY, JULY 4, 2009

« Back to the grid | Next story »

Shoddy Electrical Work Killing US Troops in Iraq

(Newser Summary) – 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

More about:  Iraq • US military • Iraq contractors • military bases • KBR • electrical shocks • electrocution

This undated photo, shows Staff Sgt. Ryan Maseth....
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...
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...
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)
« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow
1 comment
VIEWING:
 
bigtoe1340
Jun 26, 09 4:39 AM CDT
As and electrician in Phoenix and the owner of Meade Electric I find this to be a real tragedy. I come from a long line of military men; I don't think we have missed a war or conflict since WW1. Our boys deserve the very best we can give them and to hear they are dieing of basically negligence is just wrong. Shame on KBA for hiring unskilled people to do a job they know requires a certain level of expertise. I hope somebody holds them accountable for the lack of professional workmanship that has caused this most unfortunate death. God bless our fighting men. Sincerely. Tony D. http://www.meadeelectric.biz Reply
Vote up! Vote down!
0
LEAVE A
COMMENT Comment Policy

 

Related Newser Stories

136 Stories

 Halliburton, KBR 
 Sued for Sickening 
 Iraq Troops 

Suit charges contractors supplied spoiled food, contaminated water

Military Times Military Times Dec 4, 08 1:51 AM CST
(Newser Summary) - A lawsuit filed against Halliburton and KBR accuses the military contractors of exposing troops and civilian workers on a US base in Iraq to spoiled food, contaminated water, and toxic fumes from a burn pit, the Military Times reports. The lead plaintiff in the suit said he still has nightmares after seeing a wild dog roaming the base with a human arm in its mouth after KBR dumped medical waste in a trash fire instead of a medical incinerator. More »

More about:  Iraq • US military • Iraq contractors • military bases • KBR • Halliburton

Army 'Warned on Wiring' Before Soldier's Electrocution

Sergeant filed work order after being shocked in the shower

CNN CNN Jul 31, 08 12:31 PM CDT
(Newser Summary) - A sergeant warned Army administrators about faulty wiring months before a soldier was electrocuted in a shower at the same quarters, CNN reports. "Pipes have voltage, get shocked in the shower," he wrote in a work order. A House committee probing the electrocution deaths in Iraq had previously heard there was no evidence the Pentagon or contractor KBR knew of electrical problems at the facility. More »

More about:  Iraq • US military • KBR • electrocution

Inquiry Into Iraqi Graft Expands to Top US Officers


New York Times New York Times Feb 15, 09 12:30 AM CST
(Newser Summary) - The United States' poor track record on rebuilding Iraq has long been chalked up to lousy planning by Pentagon brass. But an expanding investigation by federal authorities adds another element to the mix: possible corruption by the military commanders who oversaw reconstruction in the Wild West days after the invasion, the New York Times reports. Investigators have subpoenaed the bank records of an Army colonel and an Air Force lieutenant colonel, both of whom deny wrongdoing. More »

More about:  Iraq • US military • bribery • contractors • Iraq contractors • Iraq reconstruction • graft • post-war reconstruction

Foreign
Workers
Held in Iraq

Contractor kept 1,000 Asian laborers 3 months in warehouses

Christian Science Monitor Christian Science Monitor Dec 3, 08 7:34 PM CST
(Newser Summary) - About 1,000 foreign workers brought to Iraq with the promise of lucrative jobs have been living for 3 months in Baghdad warehouses under poor sanitary conditions and in possible violation of US military rules, McClatchy reports. A Kuwaiti company that subcontracts with KBR, formerly Haliburton, brought the men from Central Asia and elsewhere after charging them $2,000. More »

More about:  Iraq • US military • human trafficking • KBR • Halliburton • foreign labor • subcontractor

US Contractor Bills in Iraq
to Hit $100B

Workers outnumber troops, account for
20% of war spending

New York Times New York Times Aug 12, 08 6:00 AM CDT
(Newser Summary) - By the end of the year, the US will have spent $100 billion on private defense contractors in Iraq, a congressional report finds, showing more private-sector reliance than any previous wartime. Some 20% of funds spent on the war have gone to contractors, whose numbers are now greater than the US military, the New York Times reports. More »

More about:  Iraq war • US military • Iraq war spending • security contractors • Iraq contractors • KBR • Halliburton

136 Stories

Today's Most Popular

Loading...