Mystery Illness Kills Missouri Soldier

Missouri News-Leader ^ | 7/16/03 | Eric Eckert

[SpeakLittle_ThinkMuch]

Mystery illness kills Missouri soldier
Josh Neusche died Saturday; his family waits for answers.
By Eric Eckert
News-Leader Staff

July 16, 2003

 

Montreal, Mo. — Seventeen-year-old Jacob Neusche spent Tuesday morning packing up his big brother's belongings — books, a high school letterman's jacket and a Class A uniform.  "That's what Josh will be buried in," the teenager said, referring to the uniform.

 

Missouri National Guard Spc. Josh Neusche, 20, died Saturday at the Homburg Hospital in Germany from a mysterious illness. A member of the 203rd Engineer Battalion, he is the only Missouri National Guardsman on the Department of Defense's casualty list.

 

Family and friends are awaiting the soldier's body, scheduled to arrive Thursday in the United States.

 

They are also waiting for autopsy results, and his parents, Mark and Cindy Neusche, are calling for an investigation.

 

"He's always been healthy," Mark Neusche said. "Hell, he's a cross-country runner. There's no reason for a boy of his health to deteriorate so quickly."

 

Cindy Neusche said her son collapsed July 2 while in Baghdad and was transported to Germany. Doctors there told the family they believed Josh suffered from pneumonia due to fluid that had collected on his lungs. But then his liver, kidneys and muscles started to break down, his mother said.

 

"They were doing some things there, trying to get his kidneys flushed out," she said through tears. "They told us his potassium levels came up so far and he needed to go on dialysis."

 

The Neusches traveled to Germany Friday to be with their son. When they arrived, they found him in a drug-induced coma. The grief-stricken couple weren't able to talk with their boy, but they believe he knew they were there.

 

"In our hearts, we felt he heard us," said Cindy Neusche. "You could tell by the machines he was on. His heart rate got faster when we talked to him."

 

Josh Neusche died the next day.

 

Doctors and family members are still befuddled by the strange illness. There's got to be an explanation, Mark Neusche said. He prays the hospital's autopsy will reveal the cause.

 

"I know the doctor over in Germany said he got into some type of toxin," Mark Neusche said. "Several soldiers were in similar conditions while we were there."

 

So far there has been no hint of an official inquiry.

 

"That's not under investigation," said U.S. Army Spokesman, Lt. Col. Jeff Keane, from Virginia.

 

"To my knowledge, we've not been asked to do that (investigate)," added Whitney Frost, a spokeswoman for U.S. Rep. Ike Skelton.

 

Meanwhile, friends and family have been reminiscing about their loved one.

 

"I lost the person I looked up to the most," Jacob Neusche said of his brother. "I guess now the role I'll have to step into is caring for my mother and dad. My brother always did that."

 

Friends remembered how Josh loved to play his trombone, his reign as Camdenton High School's 2002 prom king and his penchant for mathematics.

 

"He was a tutor for little kids," said friend Danny Pacholski. "The guy was a genius at math. ... It's really heartbreaking that this happened. We were always supposed to grow up with each other."

 

Josh's high school sweetheart, Krissy Lewis, said he lived his 20 years to the fullest. The couple broke up after high school, but stayed close friends.

 

"He was the most outgoing person I'd ever met," Lewis said, adding that friends have been consoling each other since they learned of the death. "One moment, I'm OK and then it hits me that I've lost the first love of my life."

 

Josh joined the National Guard in high school. When he was activated in March, the young man was enrolled at Southwest Missouri State University as a freshman.

 

He was taking general-education courses and had been dating fellow student Layne Clark for eight months. Clark, 19, said she and Josh talked many times about getting married.

 

"We met at college through a friend of ours," Clark said Tuesday. "We loved to go dancing. We saw a lot of movies and we enjoyed just being together — doing nothing."

 

Clark said the young soldier believed in his mission.

 

"He was so proud to serve his country. He thought this was the right thing to do and he wanted to do it. He was the most courageous man I'd ever known."

 

On Sunday — the day after learning of Josh's death — Clark received a two-page letter from her boyfriend; it was postmarked June 30.

 

"He just told me that everything was going all right and he'd be home soon."

[Marianne]

WARNING OF TOXIC AFTERMATH FROM URANIUM MUNITIONS LINK
excerpts:
"Former Maj. Douglas Rokke, who was director of the Army's depleted uranium project, . . .
"Myself and my team members started to get sick almost immediately. It started with respiratory problems, then rashes."

[zip]

I think they said it was some unusual viral thing,

I would have checked on insurance policies bought right after the marriage unless she had preexisting conditions of some kind.

[Thumper1960]

Not withstanding the potential subject discussion of 'predestiny', we are saddened by the young man's passing. Not the least because he was serving his nation and people. It leads one to reflect on how much we take for granted. Life is fleeting in the grand design. Enjoy every moment you can. Do not let adversity poison your attitudes. Seek out the wonders and sweetness of our Earthly realm. From the descriptions of this young man, he knew at 20 what a multitude will never grasp. Live life and be happy.

[FairOpinion]

Ping.

Do you think people on your SARS ping list may be interested?

Sounds puzzling.

[CholeraJoe]

Doctors there told the family they believed Josh suffered from pneumonia due to fluid that had collected on his lungs. But then his liver, kidneys and muscles started to break down, his mother said.

The old infectious disease training is kicking in. There's one infectious disease that is endemic in third world countries that causes this constellation of symptoms. Leptospirosis. Serological tests can take several weeks to confirm.

[Domestic Church]

Pinging for your 2 cents!

Interesting differential overlap. Anthrax is a possibility.

[blam]

"Pinging for your 2 cents! "

Thanks. I read this earlier and didn't know what to say. Still don't. (A learning thread for me.)

[Domestic Church]

"... he may have been involved in grading or other earth moving operations that stirred up a lot of dust."

You probably hit the nail on the head.

[jocon307]

"Leptospirosis"

What is that? Is it related to leprosy? Or...cholera? Are you an infectious diseases expert, hence your name?

Where are the diseases of yesteryear? Sorry, I get silly at 5:30 am, like clock-work!

[CholeraJoe]

Leptospirosis is caused by a bacteria that usually infects wild rodents. It can be acquired through exposure to contaminated water or rodent droppings. Not related to leprosy or cholera.

Although infectious diseases are not my specialty, I know quite a bit about them.

[putupon]

They are also waiting for autopsy results

I wouldn't trust an autopsy conducted by the military.

My brother-in-law reported to Ft. Bragg for a new assignment. They gave him 17 shots in one day when they processed him in.

He came down w/ myocarditis right after that and survived approx. 2 months.

When he died in a civilian hospital, the Army grabbed the body and shipped it back to Bragg and did their own autopsy so quickly no one had time to think about it.

I don't know if they had found anything that embarassed them, but I suspect they were following SOP just in case.

[Doc On The Bay]

I've got Little experience with "Third World Diseases;" I Defer to your "Expertise!"

God Bless this poor soul!

I WISH I could contribute!!

Doc

[flutters]

Do you think people on your SARS ping list may be interested? Sounds puzzling.

It sure does. Sorry I didn't get this when it was posted, but I'll ping them now in case they didn't see it.

[Judith Anne]

Thanks for the ping. I'm puzzled, too.

[Prince Charles]

Atypical pneumonia bump...

And condolences to his family and friends.

[Fred Mertz]

This one sounds like some sort of bio/chem incident. Who knows?

[Calpernia]

Are you on flutters ping list? did you see this?

[Dr. Eckleburg]

Thanks for the ping. Hopefully it's not the beginning of something bigger.

[MissL]

I am sorry if someone else has posted this BUT ....I have horrible allergies to mold and I live in Missouri. But living here is my choice. I grew up in the San Francisco Bay area and did not have any allergies...NONE !!! When I lived in Seattle...I had allergies to trees, mold, and just about everything growing !!! It was deadly !!! In the mid-west you have the choice to avoid your problems....I don't go into basements...don't page through books that are full of mold. Here if you have half a brain and allergies you know you have a choice...and if you decide to dig for gold through that mold....there is a price to pay and don't whine !!!!

[Betty Jo]

http://www.csmonitor.com/2003/0710/p07s02-woiq.html

http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/WO0307/S00044.htm

two articles about "radiation" contamination.

Was this GI in or near Tuwaiha ?