Army Investigating Possible Infant Deaths from Chinese Drywall

The U.S. Army is investigating the unexplained deaths of 10 infants at Fort Bragg to see if there may be a possible connection to side effects of sulfuric fumes from Chinese drywall. 

The babies died in public housing on the North Carolina military base. Initial testing at one of the homes indicated that it had been lined with Chinese drywall, which has been found to emit sulfuric fumes that is known to corrode electrical equipment and appliances. In addition, some have claimed that the toxic drywall can cause illness for residence, but the health risks from Chinese drywall have not been confirmed.

Families reported that their children and family members developed coughs, nose bleeds, eczema and asthma before the deaths of the infants. Some also reported a smell permeating their homes similar to that of rotten eggs. The complaints are similar to reports made by families living in other homes throughout the United States that have been confirmed to contain drywall from China.

Late last month Army officials announced that five of the 10 homes where infants died had shown no signs of toxic fumes. The other five are still due to be tested. However, one of the homes, where six-week old Gabriel Duke died in March, initially tested positive for Chinese drywall before subsequent testing under different parameters determined that the toxic drywall was not in the home. The Army announced that it is reopening the investigation to determine why the testing parameters were changed.

Originally, the investigators were so certain of the tests that they told the family to evacuate the home, but a later test, using different parameters, found no Chinese drywall. Army investigators who have questioned the change in testing have not been given an answer. According to a recent report by WTVD News in Raleigh-Durham, the base has called in the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) to conduct an independent investigation.

The distributor of the drywall has told local media that they did not use tainted drywall from China.

The CPSC has received thousands of complaints from across the United States from homeowners who say that toxic Chinese wallboard imported between 2004 and 2007 releases sulfuric odors, causes health problems, and corrodes wiring and appliances. Many of the Chinese drywall corrosion problems have been confirmed by laboratory testing.

Millions of sheets of the toxic drywall were imported from China into the United States due to a domestic shortage caused by a housing boom and construction following a serious of hurricanes that struck the southeastern United States. The CPSC has confirmed more than 6 million sheets were imported into the country in 2006 alone.

Homeowners throughout the United States have filed lawsuits over Chinese drywall, naming manufacturers, distributors and builders. In June 2009, all of the federal drywall litigation was consolidated and centralized in an MDL, or Multidistrict Litigation, in New Orleans under U.S. District Judge Eldon Fallon.