‘Burn pit’ lawsuits land in Greenbelt
By Brendan Kearney, Daily Record Legal, October 20, 2009
A raft of lawsuits filed across the country by soldiers and contractors who say they were sickened by “burn pits” in Iraq and Afghanistan have been transferred to a federal judge in Maryland.UPDATE
The suits against Halliburton Co. and its former subsidiary, KBR Inc., allege a variety of waste — from batteries to medical detritus, including human remains — was tossed and torched in huge, uncovered holes near army bases.
The plaintiffs, who hope to become a class of thousands, say the hazardous smoke from these sites caused ailments from rashes to upper respiratory problems to cancer. [...]
“Wild dogs in the area raided the burn pit and carried off human remains,” the suit states. “The wild dogs could be seen roaming the base with body parts in their mouths, to the great distress of the U.S. forces.”
The actual court filing of Eller v KBR Inc et al is available online. The Plaintiff is Joshua Eller. He was deployed to Iraq for ten months starting in February 2006.
Page 11 of 17, Line 50 reads:
50. Plaintiff [Joshua Eller] witnessed the open air burn pit in operation at Balad Air Force Base. On one occasion, he witnessed a wild dog running around base with a human arm in its mouth. The human arm had been dumped on the open air burn pit...
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