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CBS2 INVESTIGATIONS
A KGAN CBS 2 Investigation uncovers a problem that even your senators did not know existed. Thousands of Iowans exposed to poison while in the military and many of them think the government is trying to cover it up and has been fore decades. The veterans and their families say they are now dying because they were exposed to toxic water. Now those veterans are desperately searching for each other to get the government to help.
CBS 2 has worked for weeks on this investigation. We show you why the government is refusing to cover medical costs and take responsibility for the Poisoned Patriots.
Camp Lejeune is a Marine Corps base in North Carolina. Millions have come, served and lived there, including thousands of Iowans who drank the water and became Poisoned Patriots.
"This scares the hell out of me, says Jon Tory as he begins to cry.
KGAN CBS 2 has obtained dozens of documents from a whistleblower that show the government knew there was poison in the water at Camp Lejeune and base leaders let it go for years. The wells were contaminated with chemicals from a nearby dry cleaning facility. Thousands of Marines like Jon Tory are angry and want answers.
"There is no reason why we should have gotten sick. And if they knew we were sick then dang it, be liable for it, says Tory.
"When you have doctors telling you that it is because of exposure to these chemicals, I believe them," says Terri Huntley as she sits along side her husband, Phil, and prays he does not have another stroke.
"Phil has a disease called central nervous system vasculitis," she says.
So far this retired marine has had more than fifty strokes in just four years. The strokes are a side effect of his illness.
"It's the side effects that eventually is what will take Phil," says Terri.
The trail of hen and where Phil Huntley got sick goes back years, from Iowa to Camp Lejeune. The year was 1985. Phil and his family lived at Camp Lejeune for a little more than two years.
Terri shows us pictures from way back when. Pictures from when Phil served in the Marines. Now his doctors say his years are numbered and painful. At the age of 49, Phils wife says he will die in the Iowa Veterans Home in Marshalltown. Phil says hes not afraid to die. He knows he will go to heaven.
But Phil does not say much. His wife, Terri, says he does not remember much either. After so many strokes, memories of his family are fading. Life at Camp Lejeune is distant. When asked what he remembers, the first thing he says is the heat and the humidity.
Terri says they definitely drank a lot of water. Her children too. They bathed in it, swam in it, they lived at Camp Lejeune.
"We were just living our life," says Terri.
The Huntleys raised two of their kids on the base, not knowing that tests were being done on the water.
According to concealed reports that a whistleblower leaked to us, the wells on the base were highly contaminated in 1980. Another report, from 1981, says water highly contaminated with solvents.
The government now admits those solvents were dumped by a nearby dry cleaner. Those chemicals leaked through the ground into the water supply, making it dangerous. But the scientists warnings were ignored. And years went by before any wells were shut down. The Huntleys and thousands of others were exposed.
"The doctors kept asking me, was your husband ever exposed to these big long words? And of course, I'd never heard of them. They kept saying solvents. Did he work with any solvents?" remembers Terri.
Terri said, no. Because until recently, she never knew the truth. It took a website, The Few The Proud The Forgotten (www.tftptf.com). A site put together by Poisoned Patriots who slowly are finding one another.
"I just couldn't believe it. I started crying. The Marine Corps never notified us. They never told us that we were being exposed, that we were exposing our children," says Terri.
Terri looks at old photos and remembers.
"Oh my gosh he's drinking apple juice which was made from the water," she says as she looks at a photo of her child drinking from a bottle. She says its haunting.
"What parent would knowingly give their child poison? You wouldn't!"
If you were to put a drop of the dry cleaning solvent that was contaminating the wells at Camp Lejeune, and put it in a gallon of water, the EPA says it would take about another 2,500 gallons of water to truly dilute the solvent to the point it would be considered safe. However, Poisoned Patriots were being subjected to another 2,779 drops of solvents. Basically a lot of poison without hardly any dilution.
I firmly believe that the Marine Corps is trying to hid this, says Tory.
Jon Tory was stationed at Camp Lejeune from 1980 to 1982. The same time those reports showed high levels of poison. Now, hes a two time cancer survivor. His family has been forced to watch him suffer.
"We should not have to be sitting here suffering," he says.
Tory is scared for his two sons. He cannot have fun or even look at them without worrying. Torys doctor says the contamination may have effected their DNA. They too can become very sick. His oldest son, Sheldon, knows this, but his fear is for his dad.
"I know, even though everything that's going on, he's still proud of what he did over there, says Sheldon as he begins to cry. I am very proud of him, he continues.
"This is criminal negligence. Criminal negligence. Not just negligence. Criminal. This is criminal," says Jon Tory.
Tory now has documents scattering his kitchen table proving that for two years he was being poisoned. Tory has not just water testing reports but also BU-MEDs. Its the navys guideline for health standards. The Marine Corps, for years, has claimed that theyve done nothing wrong because back then contaminants in the water were not regulated. According to those BU-MEDs, dating back to 1963, there were regulations set in place by the Navy, which also applies to the Marine Corps. Those guidelines say the water supply should be obtained from the most desirable source feasible and effort should be made to prevent or control pollution of the water source. Poisoned Patriots say those rules were broken by the rule makers themselves.
"That's the sad part about this. The marine corps knows what they did, says Tory.
And yet Tory and the Huntleys are denied full VA benefits.
I will never in my lifetime get the bills paid for, swears Terri.
Terris now dedicated her life to helping find others like her husband so they can come together and fight for change. She found Jon Tory at the VA Hospital in Iowa City. She took one glance at his watch and knew.
We find each other through bumper stickers, shirts, hats, and this gentlemen had on a Marine Corps watch. And I can spot that Marine Corps emblem hundreds of miles away, in the fog, says Terri.
CBS 2 was there when this small group brought their concerns to Senator Chuck Grassley.
"Even though we are still alive, we are losing our life," Tory told him.
Grassley admitted he had never once heard about the Poisoned Patriots until now.
"I promised Phil that I wont stop fighting," says Terri as we asked her what she planned to do if Phil dies.
Both Terri and Jon Tory say they will never stop fighting even though they are fighting for the same freedoms they say they already fought for.
"To see the stars and stripes waving in the wind and knowing we were a part of that and this is how we are treated? This is what we are left with?" asks Tory as he cries.
Tory says its not fair but its now his life duty.
Senator Grassley is now a co-sponsor of a bill called, The Caring for Camp Lejeune Veterans Act of 2009. If passed the Marine Corps will have no choice but to provide their Poisoned Patriots the medical care they need.
Despite all of this, many of the Marines we spoke with for this story say they remain faithful to the Corps. Many even quote the Marine Corps motto: Semper Fi. It means always faithful. The Huntleys and Tory say they have faith, eventually the Marine Corps will do the right thing.
Clearly this story is not over. We will continue to follow these veterans through their journeys.
For more information about Poisoned Patriots you can log onto The Few The Proud The Forgottens website at www.tftptf.com.
CBS 2 has worked for weeks on this investigation. We show you why the government is refusing to cover medical costs and take responsibility for the Poisoned Patriots.
Camp Lejeune is a Marine Corps base in North Carolina. Millions have come, served and lived there, including thousands of Iowans who drank the water and became Poisoned Patriots.
"This scares the hell out of me, says Jon Tory as he begins to cry.
KGAN CBS 2 has obtained dozens of documents from a whistleblower that show the government knew there was poison in the water at Camp Lejeune and base leaders let it go for years. The wells were contaminated with chemicals from a nearby dry cleaning facility. Thousands of Marines like Jon Tory are angry and want answers.
"There is no reason why we should have gotten sick. And if they knew we were sick then dang it, be liable for it, says Tory.
"When you have doctors telling you that it is because of exposure to these chemicals, I believe them," says Terri Huntley as she sits along side her husband, Phil, and prays he does not have another stroke.
"Phil has a disease called central nervous system vasculitis," she says.
So far this retired marine has had more than fifty strokes in just four years. The strokes are a side effect of his illness.
"It's the side effects that eventually is what will take Phil," says Terri.
The trail of hen and where Phil Huntley got sick goes back years, from Iowa to Camp Lejeune. The year was 1985. Phil and his family lived at Camp Lejeune for a little more than two years.
Terri shows us pictures from way back when. Pictures from when Phil served in the Marines. Now his doctors say his years are numbered and painful. At the age of 49, Phils wife says he will die in the Iowa Veterans Home in Marshalltown. Phil says hes not afraid to die. He knows he will go to heaven.
But Phil does not say much. His wife, Terri, says he does not remember much either. After so many strokes, memories of his family are fading. Life at Camp Lejeune is distant. When asked what he remembers, the first thing he says is the heat and the humidity.
Terri says they definitely drank a lot of water. Her children too. They bathed in it, swam in it, they lived at Camp Lejeune.
"We were just living our life," says Terri.
The Huntleys raised two of their kids on the base, not knowing that tests were being done on the water.
According to concealed reports that a whistleblower leaked to us, the wells on the base were highly contaminated in 1980. Another report, from 1981, says water highly contaminated with solvents.
The government now admits those solvents were dumped by a nearby dry cleaner. Those chemicals leaked through the ground into the water supply, making it dangerous. But the scientists warnings were ignored. And years went by before any wells were shut down. The Huntleys and thousands of others were exposed.
"The doctors kept asking me, was your husband ever exposed to these big long words? And of course, I'd never heard of them. They kept saying solvents. Did he work with any solvents?" remembers Terri.
Terri said, no. Because until recently, she never knew the truth. It took a website, The Few The Proud The Forgotten (www.tftptf.com). A site put together by Poisoned Patriots who slowly are finding one another.
"I just couldn't believe it. I started crying. The Marine Corps never notified us. They never told us that we were being exposed, that we were exposing our children," says Terri.
Terri looks at old photos and remembers.
"Oh my gosh he's drinking apple juice which was made from the water," she says as she looks at a photo of her child drinking from a bottle. She says its haunting.
"What parent would knowingly give their child poison? You wouldn't!"
If you were to put a drop of the dry cleaning solvent that was contaminating the wells at Camp Lejeune, and put it in a gallon of water, the EPA says it would take about another 2,500 gallons of water to truly dilute the solvent to the point it would be considered safe. However, Poisoned Patriots were being subjected to another 2,779 drops of solvents. Basically a lot of poison without hardly any dilution.
I firmly believe that the Marine Corps is trying to hid this, says Tory.
Jon Tory was stationed at Camp Lejeune from 1980 to 1982. The same time those reports showed high levels of poison. Now, hes a two time cancer survivor. His family has been forced to watch him suffer.
"We should not have to be sitting here suffering," he says.
Tory is scared for his two sons. He cannot have fun or even look at them without worrying. Torys doctor says the contamination may have effected their DNA. They too can become very sick. His oldest son, Sheldon, knows this, but his fear is for his dad.
"I know, even though everything that's going on, he's still proud of what he did over there, says Sheldon as he begins to cry. I am very proud of him, he continues.
"This is criminal negligence. Criminal negligence. Not just negligence. Criminal. This is criminal," says Jon Tory.
Tory now has documents scattering his kitchen table proving that for two years he was being poisoned. Tory has not just water testing reports but also BU-MEDs. Its the navys guideline for health standards. The Marine Corps, for years, has claimed that theyve done nothing wrong because back then contaminants in the water were not regulated. According to those BU-MEDs, dating back to 1963, there were regulations set in place by the Navy, which also applies to the Marine Corps. Those guidelines say the water supply should be obtained from the most desirable source feasible and effort should be made to prevent or control pollution of the water source. Poisoned Patriots say those rules were broken by the rule makers themselves.
"That's the sad part about this. The marine corps knows what they did, says Tory.
And yet Tory and the Huntleys are denied full VA benefits.
I will never in my lifetime get the bills paid for, swears Terri.
Terris now dedicated her life to helping find others like her husband so they can come together and fight for change. She found Jon Tory at the VA Hospital in Iowa City. She took one glance at his watch and knew.
We find each other through bumper stickers, shirts, hats, and this gentlemen had on a Marine Corps watch. And I can spot that Marine Corps emblem hundreds of miles away, in the fog, says Terri.
CBS 2 was there when this small group brought their concerns to Senator Chuck Grassley.
"Even though we are still alive, we are losing our life," Tory told him.
Grassley admitted he had never once heard about the Poisoned Patriots until now.
"I promised Phil that I wont stop fighting," says Terri as we asked her what she planned to do if Phil dies.
Both Terri and Jon Tory say they will never stop fighting even though they are fighting for the same freedoms they say they already fought for.
"To see the stars and stripes waving in the wind and knowing we were a part of that and this is how we are treated? This is what we are left with?" asks Tory as he cries.
Tory says its not fair but its now his life duty.
Senator Grassley is now a co-sponsor of a bill called, The Caring for Camp Lejeune Veterans Act of 2009. If passed the Marine Corps will have no choice but to provide their Poisoned Patriots the medical care they need.
Despite all of this, many of the Marines we spoke with for this story say they remain faithful to the Corps. Many even quote the Marine Corps motto: Semper Fi. It means always faithful. The Huntleys and Tory say they have faith, eventually the Marine Corps will do the right thing.
Clearly this story is not over. We will continue to follow these veterans through their journeys.
For more information about Poisoned Patriots you can log onto The Few The Proud The Forgottens website at www.tftptf.com.
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