Former West Virginia National Guardsman Andru Keller said he joined the military for a chance at a college education, but instead he's dealing with constant sickness.

"Nausea, vomiting, and I get skin rashes and sores on my body that don't ever heal," Keller said.

Keller, 23, of Middlebourne, said he fears his life may be shortened because he worked at a water processing plant in southern Iraq. He is part of a group of soldiers that is suing the company KBR, claiming the company knew it was sending the National Guardsmen into harm's way.

"I got out of the military, and I won't go back," he said.

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Special Section: U.S. Wars

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He said his main job was as an equipment supervisor and he volunteered for a mission to provide security for KBR civilians at the plant. But, he said, no one protected soldiers from a deadly chemical that surrounded them.

"We lived in tents for the most part … and I was always covered in the dust," Keller said.

Keller's attorney, Mike Simon, said the orange dust was sodium dichromate, and it was everywhere.

"They breathed the chemical in. It was on their skin. They slept near bags of it. They used the bags for cover during wind storms. Unbeknownst to them, it was a terrible chemical to be exposed to," Simon said.

KBR officials said that once they learned about the chemical, they told the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers and tried to prevent exposure. Company representatives also said they posted sings to warn soldiers about the toxin and its dangers.

But for Keller and other soldiers, the side effects of exposure were already starting while they were still in Iraq.

"We had nosebleeds all the time. That is one of the side effects that started over there," he said. "I have two little boys and a girlfriend … It's hard to maintain a job when you are sick all the time."

Simon said that by suing the company, he hopes "this will never happen again to any U.S. soldier."

"They went over there on our behalf and they should have never been treated the way they were treated," Simon said. "KBR was untruthful. KBR knew the truth."

The lawsuit seeks damages for soldiers' growing medical costs and Simon said taxpayers shouldn’t pay for their treatment.

He said when the inspector general's investigation into the exposure is complete, there will most likely be another congressional hearing. As of Thursday, a hearing had not been scheduled.

Members of the Democratic Policy Committee, which includes Sen. Jay Rockefeller and Sen. Robert Byrd, have asked that the Defense Department's inspector general investigate the claims.

The lawmakers said they want to know the circumstances surrounding soldiers' exposure to the chemical.

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