Aug 14, 2008 5:54 pm US/Pacific
Veteran, Former POW, 83, Dying From Mosquito Bite
LA VERNE (CBS) ―
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He was tough enough to fight the Nazis in WWII, but 83-year-old Alfonso Arrendondo is dying from West Nile virus, believed to have been contracted by a mosquito bite.
CBS
Alfonso Arrendondo, 83, of La Verne fought back the Nazi's, was a POW for a year after the invasion at Normandy and also served his country in Korea. That's what makes the fact he is dying -- from a mosquito bite -- all the more sad and shocking.
The 83-yearold former soldier was diagnosed last month with West Nile virus after a series of misdiagnoses. Doctors thought he had pneumonia. Then they didn't know what he had.
His wife, Francis, told KCAL 9's Serene Branson that one of the couple's daughter's suggested a spinal tap.
That concluded Arredondo had an advanced case of West Nile. And doctors have told Francis, and the couple's six children, that the veteran has months to live.
Francis told Branson that she warned her husband about the many mosquitos that were showing up in the couple's backyard. That yard abuts to a wash. He told his wife, who recounted through tears: "They're not infected, don't worry about it."
In addition to the couple's 6 children, the Arredondos also have 17 grandchildren and 16 great-grandchildren.
Francis told Branson she wants the community to be warned so no other families are affected by -- or infected with -- this potentially fatal virus. And Francis wants to get the word out in her neighborhood where people have seen many dead birds.
Vector Control says they are not allowed to tell other residents because of "patient privacy."
Branson says Vector Control told her the wash is not currently an active breeding ground for adult mosquitos.
Still, Francis wants to remind people to put on mosquito repellent, especially during the dawn and dusk hours.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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