Pa. Soldier Died From 'Huffing' in Iraq

[Kadie]

Pa. Soldier Died From 'Huffing' in Iraq

Thursday, November 30, 2006 01 49 PM


(11-30) 13:49 PST Allentown, Pa. (AP) --


A Pennsylvania National Guard soldier found dead in his room in Iraq in March accidentally killed himself by inhaling gases from a container of pressurized air to get high, an Army investigation concluded.

Frederick Carlson IV, 25, was found unconscious in his room at the base in Taqqadum, near Fallujah, shortly before 6 p.m. March 26, The Morning Call of Allentown wrote in an article published Thursday. The paper got the information from an Army report obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request.

Investigators found a can of compressed air near Carlson's bunk and a colleague said he remembered him "huffing" fumes at least once before.

Huffing — inhaling the chemicals given off by glue, aerosols and other substances — replaces oxygen in a person's lungs. It can be fatal when too much oxygen is replaced.

snip...
"He could have stayed on base, yet he volunteered for dangerous missions outside the wire," said Capt. Cory Angell, a Pennsylvania National Guard spokesman. "It's tragic that he got caught up in using inhalants."

more...
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/news/archive/2006/11/30/national/a134928S14.DTL