Blast May Shed Light On Gulf War Illnesses

An experimental blast at western Utah’s Dugway Proving Ground is proposed for May 28 to learn more about weapons detonations in Iraq that might be linked to Gulf War illnesses.

The Dugway test will involve a small-scale detonation of bombs containing harmless substances with physical properties similar to deadly chemical-warfare agents, according to a report from the Department of Defense’s Office of the special assistant for Gulf War illnesses.

Scientists will monitor downwind spread of the test chemicals after the blast.

The information will be used to improve computer models developed to show which troops might have been exposed to chemical-warfare agents in an Iraqi storage depot destroyed in 1991 after Operation Desert Storm. A Dugway spokeswoman said she was not authorized to discuss the May 28 test yet, but confirmed the news media will be invited to observe an experiment scheduled for just before sunset.

Some Gulf War veterans blame their health problems on exposure to low levels of nerve gas or blister agent released into the air when the massive ammunition depot at Khamisiyah in southeastern Iraq was detonated in a series of explosions in March and April of 1991.