Death of My Friend's Son in Iraq Finally Sparks Pentagon Probe

So some good will come from the death of Ryan Maseth after all. The Pentagon -- after Ryan's mother, and my friend, Cheryl Harris, brought his death by electrocution to national attention -- has just ordered electrical inspections of all buildings in Iraq maintained by KBR, the major military contractor.

Cheryl, as I have written here previously, has researched other electrocutions and pressed a wrongful death lawsuit against KBR.

The senator from Cheryl's state, Pennsylvania, Bob Casey made public on Monday afternoon a written statement by Gen. David Petraeus, the American commander in Iraq. Petraeus informed Congress of the new inspections -- while also disclosing that at least 13 U.S. soldiers had been electrocuted in Iraq since the war began, and many others had received electrical shocks. Until now, the Pentagon had said 12 had been electrocuted.

A New York Times article by James Risen today relates: "Staff Sgt. Ryan Maseth, a Green Beret from Pennsylvania, died Jan. 2 when he stepped into a shower and was electrocuted at his base in Baghdad. His death prompted investigations this spring by Congress and the Pentagon's inspector general into evidence that poor electrical work at facilities used by American personnel had led to other electrocutions.

"Officials now acknowledge that Army experts warned as early as 2004 that poor electrical work by contractors was creating dangerous conditions for American soldiers. But those warnings were largely ignored."

The military told Cheryl Harris back in January that her son had foolishly carried an electrical appliance into a shower in Baghdad.

That was a lie. It turned out the fault was an improperly grounded water pump.

Just last week, Cheryl filed a motion in Federal District Court in Pittsburgh that includes a statement from another Green Beret, Sgt. Justin Hummer, saying that he suffered electrical shocks four or five times in 2007 in the same shower where Maseth later died.

"Another soldier, Specialist Stephan Michael Pabst, of the 19th Special Forces Group, has also provided a statement in the case stating that he suffered electrical shocks while living in the same complex late last year," Risen writes. "He said he had issued a repair order to KBR, but the contractor never adequately fixed the problem, and he continued to suffer shocks in his shower.

Cheryl has another son in Iraq and yet another in the military serving elsewhere. As she told me not long ago, "I'd like to have questions answered about who is accountable, and I'd like to know that this can't happen again to our troops in Iraq and Afghanistan."

Greg Mitchell's book So Wrong for So Long: How the Press, the Pundits -- and the President -- Fails on Iraq includes several chapters on "nonhostile" deaths in Iraq.

Comments

[MadJeffersonian]

As someone that deals with design and construction, the lack of inspection­s/oversigh­t for the construction of this project is unbelievable. In the private sector, there is absolutely NO WAY this building, or any like it, would have been given a Certificate of Occupancy by ANY authority having jurisdiction (Building Inspector).

This brings to mind a few of questions:
(1) who were the subcontractors responsible for this work (who actually installed the work)?

(2) who, besides the subcontractor and general contractor, inspected this building to spot deficiencies in the work and systems? Is there a government entity responsible for review (or has that been privatized, too?)

(3) who produced the construction documents for this building, and was the building constructed based on the design produced?

(4) what other problems within this building exist that have not yet manifested themselves?

(5) why were they paid for substandard work?

These are just few questions to ask. I'm sure a competent panel with design and construction knowledge could come up with more.

[memphispaul]

Greg,
As a 100% disabled veteran I applaud your continuing efforts to bring the condition under which many service members, veterans and their loved ones operate to the light of day.
Unfortunately, bringing real change to the congress, the entrenched operations of the agencies responsible and to public opinion that believes that yellow ribbon magnets and lapel pins are THE methods of supporting our troops & veterans is the work of generations.
I am happy that someone is actually undertaking this immense struggle and I hope that you do not lose the drive to see the task through to the next generation that will need to further its cause.
Best wishes....

[darthdarcy]

KBR is a criminal gang raping enterprise...

[Economike]

The military told Cheryl Harris back in January that her son had foolishly carried an electrical appliance into a shower in Baghdad.

That was a lie. It turned out the fault was an improperly grounded water pump.


Well what do you expect when we have a president who will walk a mile to tell a lie when he could walk two feet and tell the truth.

[hopeless277]

Another 'mistakes were made but no one can be held responsible' moment. The entire government of the United States of America is working as hard as it can to enslave the population of the planet and you expect justice? Man, what planet are YOU from?

[SeriousBlack]

KBR's CEO should be held liable if not in a criminal lawsuit, at least a civil one.

[mom2sons]

KBR has raided our treasury and killed our soldiers. Someone must be held accountable.

[normathumb]

Now what? Are we going to have more calls for government inspectors and regulation? Wouldn't it be better to have some expert private corporation come in? Surely, they could do it better and cheaper then the government.

[bmora]

Obviously, you have no experience in accounting for a government agency. 98%, roughly, of the time a contractor is more expensive. 80% of the time they are grossly over billing and do piss poor work. I have spent most of my professional career in government and it makes me sick to my stomach to see my money go into the pocket of a few already rich individuals at my expense.

You should be angry at Worldcom, Stearns or Enron, et. al. They have wasted far more of your money than any government can.

[ItsNeverOver]

what bmora says is absolutely true. Due to the nature of the cost-plus contracts, which stipulates that the contractors' income is determined by a percentage of the 'costs of operation' (which is billed to the government), the more the contractors spend of our taxdollars, the more money they make. We SHOULD however, question why the government set these contracts up this way in the first place- does it have anything to do with the fact that KBR is a former subsidiary of Halliburton, so essentially the higher-ups at KBR are Bush-Cheney cronies?

We should also be angry at the lack of accountability the government enforces on these contractors, which allows them to get away with committing atrocities against the military and Iraqi civilians without facing consequences. I recently sat down with two Iraq War veterans to interview them for a five-part blog series I did on contractor abuse against the troops: http://www.progressivefuture.org/blog/freedom-isnt-free___and-neither-are-contractors/1

What surprised me is how aware these young vets were of the ridiculous amount of wasted money went to the contractors. Next week, on the same website, I will be posting another interview I did with a former KBR employee who stepped down from his post to testify against the contracting company.