Citation Nr: 22051203 Decision Date: 09/08/22 Archive Date: 09/08/22 DOCKET NO. 19-22 729 DATE: September 8, 2022 REMANDED Entitlement to service connection for residuals of a deviated septum is remanded. REASONS FOR REMAND The Veteran had active service from November 1984 to March 1985, and service in the United States Army National Guard until January 1994. This matter comes to the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) from a March 2018 rating decision. A notice of disagreement was filed in June 2018, a statement of the case was issued in June 2019, and a substantive appeal was received in August 2019. The Veteran testified at a Board hearing in March 2022; the transcript is of record. In March 2018, the Veteran filed a claim of service connection for deviated septum asserting that this occurred during active duty service. In a June 2018 VA 21-0781 Statement in Support of Claim of Service Connection for PTSD the Veteran asserted that his unit (Detachment 1 Company B 4th Bn (M) 118th Infantry, South Carolina National Guard) was deployed to Istanbul, Turkey from September 26 to November 24, 1990, and on October 15, 1990 his vehicle was hit by an improvised explosive device (I.E.D.) which caused posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and he broke his nose in the crash. The U.S. Army and Joint Services Records Research Center (JSRRC), formerly known as the Center for Unit Records Research (CURR), researched the historical information available and were unable to locate documentation verifying an IED vehicle explosion in South Carolina in October 1990. 07/26/2018 Military Personnel Record. In correspondence submitted by the Veteran in April 1991, he asserted that while stationed in Turkey from September 1991 to November 1991 a hurricane hit on October 5, 1991, and he was hit in the nose by an ammunition box. 04/07/2021 Correspondence. Correspondence from a fellow soldier, T.G., states that on October 5, 1991 a strong gust of wind a tsunami - came up all of a sudden and the Veteran was hit in the nose by an ammunition box. 04/07/2021 VA 21-4138 Statement in Support of Claim. Correspondence from R.W., a fellow soldier, states that on October 5, 1991 the Veteran was hit in the nose by an ammunition box after a "very very strong storm." 04/07/2021 VA 21-4138 Statement in Support of Claim. The Veteran testified that he was hit in the nose by an ammunition box during a tsunami and his representative asserted that while he was on a mission in Turkey his armored tank vehicle was thrown during a tsunami, and he was hit in the nose by an ammunition container. 03/30/2022 Hearing Transcript at 2, 8. The Veteran's service personnel records do not specifically reflect any service in Turkey. Service personnel records reflect 39 days of inactive duty for training (IDT) points and 15 days of active duty (AD) points for the period from September 28, 1990 to September 27, 1991, and 10 days of IDT points and 22 days of AD points for the period from September 28, 1991 to February 8, 1992. 07/10/2015 Military Personnel Record at 10. Service personnel records also reflect that the Veteran served in support of Hurricane Hugo from September 27, 1989 to October 5, 1990. Id. at 21. Hurricane Hugo affected the southeastern United States and the northeastern Caribbean. Initially, clarification should be sought from the Veteran as to his assertions regarding his injury to his nose, to include the date and location of the incident. Attempts should be made to determine whether the Veteran's unit served in Turkey from September to November 1990 or from September to November 1991. An attempt should also be made to specify whether the Veteran was on active duty, active duty for training (ADUTRA) or IDT for the period from September 28, 1990 to February 8, 1992. In the event, it is confirmed that the Veteran's unit served in Turkey, the Veteran should be afforded an examination to assess the nature and etiology of his claimed deviated septum. The matter is REMANDED for the following action: 1. Contact the Veteran and request that he clarify the following: a) Please provide the specific dates your unit served in Turkey. b) Where were you stationed in Turkey? c) Please describe the incident in which you injured your nose. If such efforts prove unsuccessful, documentation to that effect should be added to the claims folder. 2. Contact the appropriate repository to determine whether the Veteran's unit - Detachment 1 Company B 4th Bn (M) 118th Infantry was deployed to Turkey from September to November 1990, or from September to November 1991. Contact the appropriate repository to determine whether the Veteran was on active duty, ACDUTRA or IDT for the period from September 28, 1990 to February 8, 1992. If such efforts prove unsuccessful, documentation to that effect should be added to the claims folder. 3. If it is verified that the Veteran's unit served in Turkey, schedule the Veteran for an examination with a clinician with appropriate expertise to assess the nature and etiology of his claimed deviated septum. The examiner should review the claims folder in conjunction with the examination and provide an opinion as to whether the Veteran's deviated septum is at least as likely as not related to active service? The examiner must provide a rationale to support the opinion. In providing the requested opinion, the examiner must consider the Veteran's description of his claimed in-service injury and symptoms, as well as his post-service symptoms. Eric S. Leboff Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans' Appeals Attorney for the Board M.W. Kreindler, Counsel The Board's decision in this case is binding only with respect to the instant matter decided. This decision is not precedential and does not establish VA policies or interpretations of general applicability. 38 C.F.R. § 20.1303.