Shoddy wiring ‘everywhere’ on Iraq bases, Army inspector says (CNN)
Shoddy wiring ‘everywhere’ on Iraq bases, Army inspector says
From Abbie Boudreau and Scott Bronstein
CNN Special Investigations Unit
March 26, 2009 (Revised March 27, 2009)
WASHINGTON (CNN) — Thousands of buildings at U.S. bases in Iraq and Afghanistan have such poorly installed wiring that American troops face life-threatening risks, a top inspector for the Army says.
“It was horrible — some of the worst electrical work I’ve ever seen,” said Jim Childs, a master electrician and the top civilian expert in an Army safety survey. Childs told CNN that “with the buildings the way they are, we’re playing Russian roulette.”
Childs recently returned from Iraq, where he is taking part in a year long review aimed at correcting electrical hazards on U.S. bases. He told CNN that thousands of buildings in Iraq and Afghanistan are so badly wired that troops are at serious risk of death or injury.
He said problems are “everywhere” in Iraq, where 18 U.S. troops have died by electrocution since 2003. All deaths occurred in different circumstances and different locations, but many happened on U.S. bases being managed by various military contractors. The Army has has reopened investigations in at least five cases, according to Pentagon sources.
Of the nearly 30,000 buildings the Army’s “Task Force Safe” has examined so far, Childs said more than half “failed miserably.” And 8,527 had such serious problems that inspectors gave them a “flash” warning, meaning repairs had to be completed in four hours or the facility evacuated.
He said the majority of those buildings were wired by contractor KBR, based in Houston, Texas. KBR has faced extensive criticism from Congress over its performance in the war zone. KBR has defended its performance and argued it was not to blame for any fatalities.
Military electrocutions became a national issue about a year ago, after the January 2008 death of Staff Sgt. Ryan Maseth of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. A decorated member of the Army’s Green Berets, Maseth was electrocuted in his shower at a U.S. base in Baghdad that once served as one of Saddam Hussein’s palaces.
His death was blamed on improper grounding and dangerous wiring on his living quarters. Soon after that, the Army asked Childs to help create “Task Force Safe,” a team of master electricians assigned to inspect Army posts for electrical dangers.
Childs said the “large majority” of the buildings the task force examined in Iraq had been wired by KBR, which he expected would follow American standards. But the results, he said, were “just horrible.”
In one building, “I had them pull a switch out of the wall to look at a switch, and when they pulled it out of the wall, the wires fell out of it,” Childs said. Thinking that was an exception, “We pulled the one next to it. They fell off,” he said. “It was just very, very poor quality work.”
Much of the work was done by crews from countries beyond Iraq, “with very little supervision by anybody.” And many of the problems involved improperly grounded systems that allowed plumbing to conduct electricity, which he said could lead to electric shocks such as the one that killed Maseth.
Childs said service orders on at least two occasions warned of the hazard in Maseth’s quarters, and “two simple electrical 101s” should have been checked out by electricians.
“A competent electrical contractor and electrician would have gone to that job site and tried to discover why pipes could have been energized,” he said. If they had been, “then Ryan Maseth would not have been electrocuted, in my opinion.”
Maseth’s family is suing KBR. An Army investigator has recommended that his cause of death be changed to “negligent homicide,” accusing the company of failing to properly supervise or inspect its work. The Army has yet to accept the recommendation.
KBR has repeatedly said it was not responsible for Maseth’s death or for any of the others and defended its work.
“KBR has worked diligently to address electrical issues when asked,” the company told CNN in a written statement. “What is important to remember is the challenging environment in which these issues exist.
“The electrical standards in Iraq are nowhere near those of Western or U.S. standards. Add to this the challenges that exist in a war zone. We have been and remain committed to fully cooperating with the government on this issue.”
But Childs said the majority of buildings on U.S. bases were built and wired by KBR since the U.S. invasion.
“They installed the housing units, they installed the electrical, they installed the wiring. They installed it all. And it’s wrong,” he said. “It’s all put in wrong.”
KBR was not alone, however. He said the Army survey found problems with every contractor whose work it inspected.
Task Force Safe has yet to inspect another 70,000 buildings in Iraq and has just begun its review of bases in Afghanistan, where contractors have raised similar concerns. In written answers to questions from CNN, Pentagon spokesman Chris Isleib said, “We are correcting hazardous conditions every day.”
“This is a huge undertaking but absolutely necessary for the life, health and safety of our service members and civilians,” he said. “When we find a defect, we put in an emergency work order and take action immediately to protect the people working or living in those facilities.”
But Childs told CNN he is surprised more Americans have not been hurt.
(click HERE for original article)
I’ll bet KBR and the Pentagon didn’t see this comin’!!! Kudo’s to Jim Childs, Scott Bronstein and Abbie Boudreau for a great article!
Ms Sparky
Friday, March 27th 2009 at 6:20 am |
Keep an eye on CNN. There is supposed to be a video of the Jim Childs interview on CNN’s Lou Dobbs tonight. Friday the 27th.
Monday, March 30th 2009 at 4:53 pm |
Mr childs Is wrong about KBR installed it all. Most “hard stand ” buildings were built by someone else as a permanent building. and Most “trailer type” hootches were built elsewhere in the middle east. I remember “Red Sea’ buildings as a certain manufacturer, and there were many others ( different models etc>
and so therefore KBR never had the manpower to inspect every single container. I know on my camp things were done safe
Ms Sparky’s Response:
I think this is the statement you are referring to.
“They installed the housing units, they installed the electrical, they installed the wiring. They installed it all. And it’s wrong,” he said. “It’s all put in wrong.”
I could be wrong, but I believe he is talking about the trailers, hooches, CHU’s.
Not knowing which camp is yours, I can’t say personally. But I’m glad you did things safely.
Tuesday, June 9th 2009 at 6:03 am |
The Chairman of KBR recently said in an interview that i read in “stars & stripes” stated and i quote “The company was striving to meet the British Electrical code, which was more in line with the iraqi electrical system”
So when a new installation arrives on site it should be tested, and if what the chairman is saying is true it should have been tested to BS7671 (British Standard) now i’m sure that this wasn’t done in theatre when these installations were sited, it would’ve been a case of getting it in and energised asap, in the BS7671 there are numerous tests to be done both un-energisd testing and energised testing, which invariably would throw up any faults in said installations, sure even a basic insulation test would know you had a problem somewhere!! So how did KBR let things get so bad within their SOW to provide soldiers with a safe enviroment in which to live, i wish i knew the answer!
below is a statement in which periodic testing of premises have to adhere to in the uk, i hope some of this helps in anyway.
Periodic testing provides evidence of compliance with Electricity at Work Regulations.
Testing and Inspection of electrical installations is an essential part of ensuring compliance with the requirements of The Electricity At Work Regulations 1989 (BS7671).
Most electrical installations suffer damage and deterioration or alteration throughout their operational life. Therefore, planned recorded electrical inspection and testing will be essential to confirm the continuing safe operation of installed installations.
The criterion for the test and inspection to take place is usually dictated by companies assessing their Health and Safety policy. It is a fundamental requirement of the Health and Safety At Work Regulations that electrical systems installed in places of work comply with the requirements of The Electricity at Work Regulations 1989.
More companies are now introducing people and procedures to ensure that they introduce a Proactive Maintenance Programme to create a safe working environment.
Although electrical installations are designed and constructed to a very high standard, once an installation is in operation problems can occur due to the following causes:-
Change of ownership of the premises
Change of use of the premises
After alterations or additions to the original installation
Because of any significant change in the electrical loading of the installation
Where there is reason to believe that damage may have been caused to the installation
The Electricity At Work Regulations 1989 places legal responsibility on the owner of an electrical installation to prevent electrical accidents. These regulations call for all electrical systems and apparatus which are, or may be, attached to the electrical installation, to be maintained in a safe condition so that individual users may be protected from electrical shock or fire hazards.
Regulation 4(2) of the Electricity At Work Regulations 1989 requires that all systems and apparatus are maintained to prevent danger. It is essential to decide when maintenance is necessary to prevent danger. This means that all electrical systems should be certified at least every 5 years. The majority of clients request 100% visual examination and a 20% test of their installation every year.
Ms Sparky’s Response:
Thanks for those insights. The fact that anyone in KBR is making the claim that they were installing electrical to the BS (British Standard) is nothing more than BS (Bull Shit). From 2004-2006 I never heard the term British Standards!
Wednesday, June 10th 2009 at 2:46 am |
Yes i would agree with you there, because as far as i’m aware british sparks were only brought into theatre in oct/nov ’08 to help with the grounding & bonding and the testing & inspection of installations!!
Ms Sparky’s Response:
Yes I do believe you are correct! That’s when G&B all of a sudden got important.
Monday, July 27th 2009 at 7:56 pm |
As a long time electrician, I was horrified to read the original article. At first I assumed that it might have been a generator issue as generators are usually rolled into place and rarely grounded properly – but then I hear it was in a building and it made me wonder how a simple water bond and some #8 wire could have been ignored.
Then I thought about all the polyethelene pipe and wirsbo being used now, and wondered if they had run some quick PVC to get water into a building. That would make sense, but somehow the drain or water heater connection could have been grounded. I would also suspect that there are many ‘temporary’ installations that are running on gennys with no ground rods. A hitch support sitting on Terra Firma does not a ground make IMO. Even a 4 foot ground rod would be an improvement, and if they were constantly on the move, a Ufer could have been made with 100′ of solid #4 laid in a shallow trench. As my grandfather used to say, it’d be better than a sharp stick in the eye at any rate. Conditions are far from perfect over there, but there is no excuse for unsafely installed electrical systems.
I considered going over there and working for KBR at one point, and am a little sorry now I didn’t – maybe I could have saved a life. I find it really sad that even one of our soldiers would have to die in such a manner.
Tuesday, July 28th 2009 at 9:14 am |
Morg, I wish there were more people here like you, though there are some who are decent workers there are also many who know nothing or know it but care nothing. If the signatures on the TI forms were matched up and those who signed off that things were good enough were taken into custody I am sure things would be far better in futurefor most even though it appears SSGT Maseth was the victim of failings in more than 1 unit.
Tuesday, July 28th 2009 at 10:25 am |
I have heard rumor that KBR did not actually perform many TI’s at RPC, they were in a hurry and the Area Lead, Ops DPM and PM signed off on the buildings. The DoDIG needs to continue digging and interview some of those that attended the JPM meetings on Thursdays at the F2 Seahut. Bet there would be some interesting revelations come to light.
Wednesday, July 29th 2009 at 12:58 pm |
“KBR has worked diligently to address electrical issues when asked,” the company told CNN in a written statement. “What is important to remember is the challenging environment in which these issues exist.
Management sleeping in the office with the doors locked with corporate putting up a front of active denial or wrongdoing. This is what happens when you cut corners and hire people with weak credentials.
Thursday, July 30th 2009 at 4:23 am |
I would like to add to Baboo’s comment about weak credetials. It is COMMON KNOWLEDGE that KBR knows some people received licenses from thr state of Texas without a valid residential address nor any proof of work history. I am referring to electician’s licenses specifically. Not all of them but some. There are Bosnians, Macedonians, etc getting these online through the Texas website and only paying chump change for them. This is a loophole that has made these people “licensed” and with that a pay increase. They should be discharged not for doing a bad job but for falsification of credentials. Ksniper77 and Anonymous, what do ye have to say here, hmmm? They did it for the money and money alone and not for any altruistic idea.