Oh Oh Oh! Sarin Nerve Gas Found!

MKSheppard · Post by **MKSheppard** » 2003-04-06 10:58pm

http://www.bayarea.com/mld/mercurynews/ ... 573683.htm

Knight Ridder Newspapers

ALBU MUHAWISH, Iraq - U.S. soldiers evacuated an Iraqi military compound on Sunday after tests by a mobile laboratory confirmed evidence of sarin nerve gas. More than a dozen soldiers of the Army's 101st Airborne Division had been sent earlier for chemical weapons decontamination after they exhibited symptoms of possible exposure to nerve agents.

The evacuation of dozens of soldiers Sunday night followed a day of tests for the nerve agent that came back positive, then negative. Additional tests Sunday night by an Army Fox mobile nuclear, biological and chemical detection laboratory confirmed the existence of sarin.

Sgt. Todd Ruggles, a biochemical expert attached to the 2nd Brigade of the 101st Airborne said, "I was right" that chemical agents Iraq has denied having were present.

In addition to the soldiers sent for decontamination, a Knight Ridder reporter, a CNN cameraman and two Iraqi prisoners of war also were hosed down with water and bleach.

U.S. soldiers found the suspect chemicals at two sites: an agricultural warehouse containing 55-gallon chemical drums and a military compound, which soldiers had begun searching on Saturday. The soldiers also found hundreds of gas masks and chemical suits at the military complex, along with large numbers of mortar and artillery rounds.

Chemical tests for nerve agents in the warehouse came back positive for so-called G-Series nerve agents, which include sarin and tabun, both of which Iraq has been known to possess. More than a dozen infantry soldiers who guarded the military compound Saturday night came down with symptoms consistent with exposure to very low levels of nerve agent, including vomiting, dizziness and skin blotches.

A hand-held scanning device also indicated the soldiers had been exposed to a nerve agent. Two tests at the compound were negative, but further testing indicated sarin was present.

Sarin can be inhaled or absorbed through the skin and is considered one of the most feared but also the most volatile of the nerve agents, chemical weapons experts have said. A cloud of sarin can dissipate after several minutes or hours depending on wind and temperature.

The soldiers, journalists and prisoners of war who tested positive were isolated as everyone else evacuated the area. After about 45 minutes, the group was walked, single-file, down a road for about a city block to where two water trucks awaited them. The men stepped between the two trucks and were hosed down as they lathered themselves with a detergent containing bleach.

1st Lt. Elena Aravjo of the 63rd Chemical Company said she thought there might well be chemical weapons at the site. "We do think there's stuff in this compound and the other (agricultural warehouse) compound, but we think it's buried," she said. "I'm really suspicious of both of those compounds."

The suspicions, or at the very least concerns, were widespread. The 2nd Brigade's commander, Col. Joseph Anderson, toured the site on Sunday, as did Brig. Gen. Benjamin C. Freakley, the assistant commander of the 101st Airborne for operations. Shortly after, the division commander, Maj. Gen. David H. Petraeus, also visited the site.

The ranking officers made no official comment about suspected nerve agents. Troops not wearing chemical protection suits later reoccupied the military complex, while sections of the agricultural warehouse remained taped off.

Queeb Salaron · Post by **Queeb Salaron** » 2003-04-06 11:03pm

One part of the article says that they found chemical barrels, and another part says that there might well be chemical weapons at the site. I'm confused. Someone interpret this article for me.

Post by **Sea Skimmer** » 2003-04-06 11:04pm

While it wont surprise me if true, without confirmation from another source that’s better known I'm not believing it. Preferably that source would be live video from CENTCOM.

Post by **Sea Skimmer** » 2003-04-06 11:06pm

Queeb Salaron wrote:One part of the article says that they found chemical barrels, and another part says that there might well be chemical weapons at the site. I'm confused. Someone interpret this article for me.

The barrels could be filled with chemical weapon agents. Thats a common means of storing them, it makes the stuff easier to work with and generally extends the life.

Nathan F · Post by **Nathan F** » 2003-04-06 11:12pm

Wonder how the rabid anti-war people are going to twist this around...

Oughta be interesting.

MKSheppard · Post by **MKSheppard** » 2003-04-06 11:13pm

Nathan F wrote:Wonder how the rabid anti-war people are going to twist this around...

Oughta be interesting.

Just go to www.democraticunderground.com
for all the rabid anti-war shit you'd ever want!

(WARNING: Your brain may melt)

Joe · Post by **Joe** » 2003-04-06 11:14pm

MKSheppard wrote:
Nathan F wrote:Wonder how the rabid anti-war people are going to twist this around...

Oughta be interesting.
Just go to www.democraticunderground.com
for all the rabid anti-war shit you'd ever want!

(WARNING: Your brain may melt)

Ugh, DU.com is worse than listening to NPR.

Post by **The Yosemite Bear** » 2003-04-06 11:17pm

Now we just have to tie them to the subway attack cult and we will get Japan off their asses, and into the fight despite the fact that their constitution says they can't fight.

Post by **Sea Skimmer** » 2003-04-06 11:21pm

The Yosemite Bear wrote:Now we just have to tie them to the subway attack cult and we will get Japan off their asses, and into the fight despite the fact that their constitution says they can't fight.

The world is better off with a Japanese military that never leaves home.

Enforcer Talen · Post by **Enforcer Talen** » 2003-04-06 11:29pm

we're happy with japan just sending money and sexay anime.

Phil Skayhan · Post by **Phil Skayhan** » 2003-04-06 11:42pm

Two negatives and one positives... I'd wait for more testing. Sarin is apparently easily absorbed into soil in hot dry conditions. Perhaps that's how they were exposed.

Anyone know the procedure for field testing for Sarin?

Post by **weemadando** » 2003-04-06 11:45pm

So have they found a stash of sarin, or merely evidence that there was sarin there once upon a time?

Marc Xavier · Post by **Marc Xavier** » 2003-04-06 11:57pm

*turns on CNN* If this were true, CNN would have gotten ahold of it and never ever ever shut up.

Post by **Sea Skimmer** » 2003-04-07 12:02am

weemadando wrote:So have they found a stash of sarin, or merely evidence that there was sarin there once upon a time?

If troops where affected the agent would have to be present.

Hamel · Post by **Hamel** » 2003-04-07 12:03am

Will this be yet another bogus story that amounts to nothing?

Stay tuned

Nathan F · Post by **Nathan F** » 2003-04-07 12:08am

Hamel wrote:Will this be yet another bogus story that amounts to nothing?

Stay tuned

Doubt it, seeing as though it has quotes from military officials.

Post by **Sea Skimmer** » 2003-04-07 12:14am

Nathan F wrote:
Hamel wrote:Will this be yet another bogus story that amounts to nothing?

Stay tuned
Doubt it, seeing as though it has quotes from military officials.

Yes, its so hard to fake quotes

RedImperator · Post by **RedImperator** » 2003-04-07 12:50am

There might not be much news about it on the networks because right now there's American tanks in Saddam Hussein's presidential complex. Then again, there's nothing running on the tickers, either. Until I see cooboration, I'm not believing this.

Post by **Darth Wong** » 2003-04-07 12:54am

Nathan F wrote:Doubt it, seeing as though it has quotes from military officials.

So did the story about Jessica Lynch fighting to the death and sustaining multiple gunshot wounds and stab wounds.

Not saying it isn't true, but just that our confidence in the media has taken a beating lately.

Nathan F · Post by **Nathan F** » 2003-04-07 01:01am

Darth Wong wrote:
Nathan F wrote:Doubt it, seeing as though it has quotes from military officials.
So did the story about Jessica Lynch fighting to the death and sustaining multiple gunshot wounds and stab wounds.

Not saying it isn't true, but just that our confidence in the media has taken a beating lately.

Oh? Somehow this one escaped my notice....

hmm, I'll have to check that out...

Post by **Coyote** » 2003-04-07 02:29am

Partly due to some of the hype surrounding Jessical Lynch, I am also witholding judgement on this until it can be corroborated. Fox news said nothing exfept that a site where hundreds of gas masks and similar chemical warfare equipment (suits, injectors, etc) was found, but made no mention of chem at least a couple hours ago.

You can bet that if chem was found, Fox would be all over that shit.

Post by **Sea Skimmer** » 2003-04-07 02:36am

I lost the link, but I just read something that said forces on the scene believed it was possibul the barrels contained insecticide and where leaking. Insecticide's are for the most part low grade nerve agents and it was insecticide research that led to the discovery of tabun and later Sarin in Germany.

The research team spent quite a few weeks in the hospital afterwards…

Stuart Mackey · Post by **Stuart Mackey** » 2003-04-07 02:47am

Sea Skimmer wrote:I lost the link, but I just read something that said forces on the scene believed it was possibul the barrels contained insecticide and where leaking. Insecticide's are for the most part low grade nerve agents and it was insecticide research that led to the discovery of tabun and later Sarin in Germany.

The research team spent quite a few weeks in the hospital afterwards…

Indeed. Any nation hat can make fertiliser and flyspary can make chem weapons. For all we know it was a training facility for troops in chem warfare defence. If they can use it on Iran and Kurds then it can be used against them as well.

Boba Fett · Post by **Boba Fett** » 2003-04-07 06:28am

Sea Skimmer wrote:
weemadando wrote:So have they found a stash of sarin, or merely evidence that there was sarin there once upon a time?
If troops where affected the agent would have to be present.

That's right!
On the other hand sarin gas completely dissolves after a couple of hours.

Phil Skayhan · Post by **Phil Skayhan** » 2003-04-07 06:37am

www.reuters.com

Mon April 7, 2003 06:43 AM ET

NEAR BAGHDAD (Reuters) - U.S. biological and chemical weapons experts believe they may have found an Iraqi storage site for weapons of mass destruction (WMD), a U.S. officer told Reuters on Monday.
"Our detectors have indicated something," said Major Ros Coffman, a public affairs officer with the U.S. 3rd Infantry.

"We're talking about finding a site of possible WMD storage. This is an initial report, but it could be a smoking gun," he said, adding that the site was south of the central Iraqi town of Hindiyah.

"It is not as if there is a cloud of gas hanging everywhere endangering soldiers lives. We're talking about a facility," Coffman added.