Army vets claim exposure to chemicals at McClellan caused health issues

Dozens of veterans once stationed at the former Fort McClellan in Anniston  blame exposure to chemicals at McClellan for their illnesses and want help from the government.

More than five thousand McClellan veterans have banded together on Facebook.   

Weapons training at McClellan began with ordinances in 1912 then chemicals were added in 1922. Thirty years later, biological warfare training started when the Chemical Corps School (later known as the U.S. Army Chemical Center and School) opened. 

According to a 2001 U.S. Army Corps of Engineers report, mustard gas was used starting in 1954 then nerve agent, a blood agent containing cyanide and biological stimulants were added in 1969.

McClellan closed in 1999 and drums of radioactive waste were found buried even leaking. A risk assessment in the 2001 U.S. Army Corps of Engineers report deemed McClellan "catastrophic" given the explosives and chemical agents on site and the proximity to educational, residential, hospital, and shopping centers.

A 1996 U.S. Army Center for Health Promotion and Preventative Medicine report found "potential radiological health hazards" at McClellan.

Two sick vets asked the Department of Veterans Affairs to link their illnesses to their service at McClellan. One made the request in 2007.  The other asked in 2011. The VA granted the requests. A VA court concluded one died from thyroid cancer following exposure to agent orange at  McClellan. Another VA court found the second got sick from his herbicide exposure at McClellan.

Requests have been made to the DOD since August to find out what's been done to look into the health complaints from possible contamination. The department hasn't responded.

But Congress has taken notice. The Fort McClellan Health Registry Act has the support of 78 co-sponsors in the House to investigate the chemical contamination, as well as diagnose and treat veterans who served there.  No Alabamians are listed as co-sponsors, not even Congressman Mike Rogers, (R) Anniston. 

The Fort McClellan Health Registry Act was first introduced to Congress January 2013. It still awaits action in a committee. But the bill continues to gain support among Republicans and Democrats.

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Etowah 40, St. Clair County 14

Class 4A

Hokes Bluff 31, Locust Fork 29

Class 3A

Pisgah 33, Ashville 12

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Cleveland 36, Southeastern 6

Class 1A

Donoho 62, Coosa Christian 0

Interclass

Alexandria 53, Cherokee County 21

Childersburg 38, Lincoln 27

Collinsville 46, Valley Head 18

Fyffe 59, Plainview 28

Gaston 36, Pleasant Valley 15

Geraldine 41, Crossville 14

Glencoe 17, Cleburne County 10

Ider 30, Sylvania 6

Munford 33, Talladega 7

Ragland 34, Ohatchee 26

Sand Rock 42, Cedar Bluff 0

Susan Moore 28, J.B. Pennington 21

Sylacauga 58, B.B. Comer 24

Talladega County Central 42, Vincent 40

Woodland 25, Wadley 6

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Munford man arrested in connection with Sylacauga robbery

John Steven Barnett

Talladega County Sheriff's deputies have arrested a Munford man suspected of first-degree robbery in Sylacauga.

According to Talladega County Sheriff Jimmy Kilgore, 43 year old John Steven Barnett, allegedly entered Lucky Food Mart and held the clerk at gunpoint.

The sheriff said deputies  got a call that a white male had entered the store produced a silver handgun, pointed it at the clerk and demanded the clerk give him the money. The clerk complied and gave him the bank bag. It contained the day’s earnings. The gunman took it and fled from the store.”

Kilgore added there were a couple of witness who came in and told the clerk about a suspicious vehicle parked behind the store.

Investigators followed up, and ultimately, received a tip of the subject who was possibly involved.

Barnett was transported to the Talladega County Jail.

District Judge Ryan Rumsey set Barnett’s bond at $10,000.

Etowah Commission to buy wetland credits for industrial park

The Etowah County Commission is expected to approve spending $24,225 to buy wetland credits for the Little Canoe Creek Industrial Park.  County Chief Administrative officer Patrick Simms has said the county cannot move forward without the credits. 

The commission has about 900 acres for the Little Canoe Creek Industrial Park property just off U.S. Highway 11 near the St. Clair County line. Commissioners plan to promote the property as a large industrial site.

The money to purchase the credits is in the budget, and commissioners expect to approve the purchase at their next meeting.

Officials say the  wetland credit is needed before a road can be built into the site.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers requires the purchase of credits when work is needed to remove a wetland area.

The money for the credits is placed in a wetlands mitigation bank to set up and create a wetland in another area to compensate for the loss of a wetland.

Talladega County Jail Employee files federal suit against county and Sheriff

A federal lawsuit brought by a Talladega County Jail employee against a group of county officials alleging discrimination and civil rights violations has been made public.

Shirley Barclay and her attorneys, claim Barclay was denied a promotion, based in part on gender and race — a violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Civil Rights Restoration Act.

The list of defendants named in the complaint includes the Talladega County Commission, the Talladega County Sheriff’s Department, Sheriff Jimmy Kilgore and Scott Bonner.

The lawsuit, initially filed in the Northern District of Alabama in May and updated in October, alleges Barclay was denied promotion opportunities, “despite consistent performance evaluations that resulted in steady pay raises since 2007.”

Barclay, who has worked for the department since October 2007, completed mandatory training needed to fulfill the duties of entry clerk, a position former Sheriff Jerry Studdard assigned her to following the retirement of the previous clerk on July 31, 2011.

After more than six months on the job, Barclay claims she was reassigned to work in a guard tower, and “a white, female corrections officer with less experience and education assumed her position as entry clerk.”