When the amphibious assault ship USS Boxer transits under the Coronado Bay Bridge, sailors and Marines guard the railings on board. (Photo by Daniel Barker, Mass Communication Specialist II in the U.S. Navy).
A Marine served on the USS Boxer during a deployment in 2016 when the ship dumped fuel, contaminating its own water supply. After an investigation by Military.com revealed the scope of the incident, he managed to obtain disability compensation that had previously been denied by the Department of Veterans Affairs.
The change in the Department of Veterans Affairs may have paved the way for other veterans to receive disability benefits, and the Navy did not publicly acknowledge the incident until News** provided evidence to the Department of Veterans Affairs prior to publication.
In June, militarycom exclusively reported how the Boxer accidentally damaged its own water supply when a senior sailor ordered a junior sailor to deliberately dump diesel fuel into the ocean. The report, based on interviews with key personnel on board the ship, as well as naval documents, detailed what sailors and Marine Corps soldiers who served on the Boxer said were covered-up accidents.
The Marine, who was a corporal at the time of the incident, was in an interview with the militaryIn an interview, COM said she submitted a copy of the survey in a new application for disability benefits after her previous application was denied. She was one of several service members who described ** problems after deployment, and when she left the U.S. Marine Corps, she filed a disability claim for "irritant contact dermatitis" with the Department of Veterans Affairs.
military.com withheld the name of the former corporal at her request because she was still working in the U.S. ** and believed she could face retaliation for talking to **.
In her initial filing, the Marine had no evidence that the water on the Boxer was contaminated with fuel, and she was rated 0% disabled, a decision that entitled her to some veterans' benefits, but no monthly payments.
However, after the results of the investigation were published, the Marine reasserted her claims and included Militarycom coverage of the incident. Her rating increased to 30% – a decision that required a monthly payment of at least $524.
The Marine said she has been in contact with others who have served on the ship, who have also been denied benefits before.
"As far as I know, everyone who tried (to apply for disability) was denied except myself," she said. ”。
Against militarycom investigation, a Navy spokesman said, "The leadership and crew of the USS Boxer immediately took appropriate measures to restrict access to the ship's drinking water." Fresh water was restored after a thorough flushing and inspection of the ship's drinking system. ”
In addition to the potential benefits, other accepted militaryMarines interviewed by com said the report, along with the Navy's admissions, ultimately helped them understand the underlying cause of the medical condition that had plagued them for years.
Another Marine Corps soldier who served on the ship in 2016 received an interview with the militaryIn an interview, com said he had been having "crazy stomach problems" since deployment.
He said he had to eat a lot of fiber "to get through the day without crushing his stomach," or he didn't eat at all.
Prior to the article's publication, the Marine said he attributed the problems to what he ate or the stress of serving while deployed overseas. He has now filed a disability claim in respect of the situation.
"I've never made the connection in my life that my stomach problems could be caused by a boxer until someone actually showed me your article," he said. Then he added that he was "a little guilty because he didn't realize it sooner — all of these stomach problems for the last 10 years are probably because of the gasoline I've been drinking for weeks." ”
He is not alone. The Marine said attending a recent wedding gave him a chance to reunite with friends on deployment, "and we were all exchanging stories." ”
To the shock of the now-retired Marine, his friends are facing "a lot of horror stories" about health issues.
The Marine said that despite being in their 30s, they have "a lot of ** problems, with eye problems and other problems increasing over time," such as vision loss.
It's probably the gasoline we all drink, "the Marine Corps recalled the group's conclusions.
military.In the survey, COM details how the dumped fuel is sucked into the system that creates water for the crew, and how it penetrates into nearly every sink and shower. The Marine said he woke up one day with "the smell of gasoline coming from the shower."
Despite his concerns, the Marine said his officers told him and other service members that there was nothing to worry about.
He told Militarycom: "I remember CO really coming over and basically saying everything was fine. ”。
The Marine accepted the militarycom, because he, like the former corporal, worked for the federal **.
Far from being the only problem of drinking water on board the Navy, the USS Nimitz and USS Abraham Lincoln have been contaminated with fuel and bacteria, respectively, over the past year.
Like the commander of the Boxers a few years earlier, Navy Captain Amy Boinschmidt, commander of the USS Abraham Lincoln, told the crew that despite their concerns, the water was good.
In a cell phone** recorded by the crew and posted online, Bauernschmidt can be heard using a ship-wide announcement system to tell the crew that she had "deliberately" bathed the night before, which was "fantastic".
On-board tests later determined the presence of E. coli in three tanks on the ship, which was linked to a leak in the ship's bilge, the part of the ship that collects waste runoff. Bauernschmidt told her team to "...... before anyone starts going crazy."Escherichia coli is an extremely common bacterium. ”
Later investigations found that not only did the Lincoln's crew miss four opportunities for sailors to identify and flag water contamination before it spread throughout the ship, but Bauernschmidt waited until the next day to begin notifying the crew of the problem.
In 2016, several sailors and marines aboard the Boxer told Militarycom, the ship's leaders – including the ship's senior medical officer – have repeatedly claimed that the water is safe to drink.
One Marine recalled, "They were very good at convincing us, and it wasn't a big deal. ”。
There is little to no record of contamination, making it a challenge for sailors and Marines to make disability claims now discovering or linking them to deployment. According to the Navy, the ship's emails were deleted as part of routine IT maintenance, according to Militarycom's open records require that no official report detailing the incident enter the chain of command.
Few human studies have been conducted on the long-term health effects of consuming any type of fuel. Short-term exposure can cause irritation or direct contact can cause swelling and burns. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, inhaling smoke may cause symptoms such as headaches, dizziness, confusion, nausea, or vomiting.
According to the Federal Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, some animal studies suggest that fuel exposure may cause certain types of cancer and nerve damage.
The Department of Veterans Affairs does not deny that exposure to fuel may be harmful to service members.
A 2023 Virginia report noted that jet fuel exposure is "one of the most common exposures in service."
Veterans Affairs documents and civilian studies also show that people who are regularly exposed to fuel experience a range of symptoms, from ** damage to nerve and immune system damage.
But that doesn't mean veterans automatically receive health care or disability benefits because of exposure. In June, Veterans Affairs Minister Denis McDonough said the department uses a variety of methods to establish links between military service and certain diseases.
McDonough said affected veterans can file a claim, and if the claim is dismissed, the veteran can appeal.
Responding to a question about the Boxer incident at a press conference on June 27, McDonough said: "Veterans clearly have a right to a higher level of scrutiny, and veterans have the right to appeal to the Veterans Appeals Board. ”。Therefore, I hope that every veteran, if they feel that they have been wrongly decided, will take advantage of these appeal options. ”
The challenge to file a claim for an illness that is not considered service-related is that veterans must prove with documentation and records that their illness or injury was due to service.
Until the Navy admits that the Boxer actually experienced at least some fuel contamination, it will be difficult for the crew members who filed the claim to link their problems to fuel exposure that occurred during their service.
A Marine Corps soldier told Militarycom, when he returned from his deployment in 2016, electronic medical records — "those littered with reports of health events related to fuel consumption exposures" — were gone.
He said he and his fellow Marines pressured their leaders on this "because many of us were concerned about disability claims after separation," but they were told there was no fuel exposure, "and then our command immediately briefed them on how the entire length of service with the Fifth Fleet was kept secret, so it was illegal to report to ** or seek legal recourse." ”
Aaron Rawlings, who was a Navy medic at the time and was assigned to a Marine reconnaissance platoon on deployment, saved an email from the time of the contamination with the subject line "Fuel in the Water," classified as "highly important." The email, signed by the Marine Corps duty officer, told the crew: "Be careful, there is fuel in the water. Bottled water is available on the restaurant deck for consumption. ”
Rollins told Militarycom, he wanted to keep the incident on record in case later exposure would cause health problems, so he put a copy of the email in every medical file of the Marine Corps. However, the former corporal, who had served in the Boxers, said that such efforts were not enough.
She hopes that more service members will now find the process of getting compensation for their medical problems easier, but she is skeptical that the Navy will provide any help.
"Of course I do," she quipped, "but you know how." ”。