Ex-Ind. soldier who blamed cancer on toxic chemicals dies

WILLIAMS, Ind. – A former Indiana National Guard commander has died after suffering from lung cancer he believed was caused by exposure to toxic chemicals in Iraq.

A funeral home says 52-year-old retired Lt. Col. James Gentry died Wednesday at his home in the southern Indiana community of Williams.

Gentry was commander of the 1st Battalion, 152nd Infantry, which was assigned to guard a water-pumping plant in Basrah, Iraq, shortly after the U.S. invasion in 2003.

Several soldiers from the unit have sued defense contractor KBR Inc., alleging it knowingly allowed them to be exposed to a known carcinogen. Houston-based KBR denies any wrongdoing.

Gentry was not a party to the suit but believed his cancer was caused by exposure.