Hesston man dies from West
Nile
HESSTON (AP) - A retired
civil engineer from Hesston who helped build the Alaska pipeline has died from
the West Nile virus - the third Kansan to die from the disease this year. James
Pulis, 79, died last last week at the Via Christi Regional Medical Center-St.
Francis Campus. Pulis' son, Michael Pulis, said his father was being treated
for pneumonia when he was diagnosed as having the mosquito-borne virus, which
can attack the brain and spinal column. "My dad was a very hale and hearty
guy; he was a very active man." he said. "He was in good condition.
No one in the family would have remotely expected that he wouldn't have lasted
10 more years. He was a big, strong man."
Michael Pulis said he hoped
his father's death would make patients and doctors realize the disease does not
occur only in rural areas.
James Pulis grew up on a
Missouri farm and was a paratrooper in World War II. He was working in Newton
when he was recruited to Alaska, where he worked for 18 years before retiring
to Hesston.
The Kansas Department of
Health and Environment said two other Kansans have died this year of West Nile
Virus.
A total of 15 Kansans have
been diagnosed with the disease.
