
EAST ALTON, Ill. — The body of Army Pvt. Matthew Bush has been returned home to East Alton, and authorities are blaming his death on the blistering summer heat in Iraq.
Bush, 20, was stationed in Kirkush, about 100 miles north of Baghdad. He had been overseas about three weeks when he was found dead in his bed Aug. 8.
A heat-related illness probably caused his death, according preliminary findings from an autopsy conducted at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware.
Rep. Jerry Costello, D-Ill., said he was told of the findings on Aug. 14. He said the doctor in charge of the autopsy planned to get in touch with Bush’s family that night. A formal autopsy...