5-7-00
Pahrump, Nevada is experiencing a housing and
constuction boom. This desert
retreat of Art Bell is also experiencing
another boom, a sharp increase in
autoimmune disease and shap increase in deaths.
As you stand on your poarch in
the bucolic surroundings of the vast pink and
rainbow painted sky, look out upon
the glowing golden mountains across the silent
desert floor, it seems that you are
one with the desert.
I began to unearth the more sinister side of
the desert when I received an
"URGENT" post on my message board.
I was informed that a friend of the poster was
taken to the hospital with an, as
yet, undiagnosed illness. I have also learned
that the patient, Mr. Donald Johnson,
has lupus as well.
I am told that Lupus, as well as CFS, ALS, MS,
FM and cancers are on the sharp
rise in peaceful Pahrump. It has been well
documented that churning up the desert
soil for major construction projects can also
churn up parasites and pathogens that
have been hidden within the soil for eons.
Combine this with the experimentation at Area
51, Exploding of depleated uranium
shell casings at Nellis AFB, combined with
residue contrails from experimental
aircraft that transverse the Pahrump Valley at
the speed of sound, combined with
stored radioactive waste at Yucca Mt. and the
Nevada Test Site, and we see an
ecological nightmare for this little town that
entered our hearts on a nightly basis.
The DOE initially hired the USGS to report on
the safety of the Yucca Mt. site.
When the USGS reported that the Yucca Mt. site
was unsafe, the DOE fired the
USGS and hired a private firm to do the work.
As of this writing, the Yucca Mt. site has not
been approved by Congress for
storing of radioactive waste. Martha Watkins,
who informed me about the rise in
illness and deaths in Pahrump is also suffering
the effects of autoimmune illness.
More then 15 of her closest friends died within
a two year period from all types of
cancers that included brain, lymph, and bone
tumors. Two more of her closest
friends are now battling cancer.
These friends were all healty, active people
who have contracted cancers within
the same timeframe. These figures are for
friends in Martha's immediate circle.
Multiply this by the entire town and you have a
health crisis.
At the same time that Mr. Johnson took ill, 4
men between the ages of 40-50
years, all previously healthy, took ill and
expired from a disease that initially began
with flu-like symptoms, and like Mr. Johnson,
all victims had breathing problems. I
have been told that birds are being found dead
in the area as well.
Over less then a one-year period, Martha has
found 20 birds dead in her back yard.
50 birds were found dead and dying at an
outdoor aviary.
I have also been told that birds are being
found dead in a neighboring State. The
birds deaths in the neighboring State have been
under wraps and classified "top
secret." Out of respect for the informant, I
cannot divulge the town or the State.
If anyone in the Nevada, or California area has
information on bird die-offs, please
contact me via e-mail.
I have found an article on Valley Fever, which
is one disease that can originate by
desert construction and am adding it to this
writing. As Martha mentioned, 8,000
homes are being built near her home. Such heavy
construction can, indeed stir up
parasites within the soil.
Anyone with meningitis-LIKE or fluL-IKE
symptoms in the Pahrump area, or anyone
who is experiencing autoimmune illnesses, or
cancer, please contact me, as well.
I am trying to put together numbers for the
rise in autoimmune/caner and also
deaths in the bustling Pahrump Valley.
When I have more documents with regard to Mr.
Johnson's illness and the obvious
ecologically induced autoimmune illness and
death in Pahrump, I will report it here.
Thank you, Patricia Doyle
Valley Fever Cases Jump 50% In Pima
By Carla McClain ARIZONA DAILY STAR
As housing construction tears up more desert on
the fringes of Tucson, one result
has been steadily rising cases of the lung
infection known as valley fever, say
public health officials.
Valley fever [Coccidiomycosis, which is caused
by the dimorphic fungus
_Coccidioides immitis_] cases jumped 50 percent
in Pima County last year s fueling
an overall 30 percent rise in the disease
statewide, according to figures just
released by the state health department. That
increase is occurring overwhelmingly
in Arizona's urban counties s Pima and
Maricopa, and more recently Pinal s where
two major risk factors, construction and older
populations, are concentrated.
Found only in three Southwestern states s
Arizona, New Mexico and Texas, as well
as Southern California [Actually, the disease
is also found in other areas of the
Lower Sonoran Life Zone, including parts of
Nevada, and Utah in the U.S., and
northern Mexico. There are also endemic foci in
Guatemala, Honduras, Venezuela,
Paraguay, Colombia, and Argentina. -DS] s
valley fever, known medically as
coccidioidomycosis, is caused by a fungus in
the desert soil. People become
infected when they breathe in the fungal spores
that become airborne when the
soil is disturbed.
"It's just construction and all that goes with
it that's stirring up dust where there
used to be desert," said Stacie Marshall,
epidemiologist for the Pima County Health
Department.
"Some are saying this (increase) is due to the
weather last year, the heavy
summer monsoon, but we saw a jump in cases in
every single month of the year,
not just after the rains. So I think it's more
than that. It has a lot to do with
people moving farther and farther out into the
desert s especially new people who
have never been exposed to the fungus, and
older people, who are more vulnerable
to it," Marshall said.
Last year, 396 valley fever cases were reported
in Pima County, up significantly
from 270 cases reported the year before s the
largest rate of increase in the
state. Maricopa County saw a 30 percent
increase from 1998 to 1999, from 1,015
to 1,309 cases. And Pinal County reported just
over a 10 percent increase, from 80
cases in 1998 to 89 last year. Despite the high
numbers in these three counties,
valley fever cases may actually be
underreported by as much as 50 percent, said
state epidemiologist Ken Komatsu.
"I think the cases that are reported are only
the most serious s when people have
to see a doctor and be tested," he said. "Most
people are not that badly affected,
and they are rarely counted."
In about 60 percent of all cases, the infection
is so mild [subclinical infection] that
people are often unaware they have the disease.
Experts believe almost everyone
who moves here does become infected, usually
within the first three years of
arrival. But most suffer few or no symptoms,
then develop immunities against it,
and are protected from re-infection. The 40
percent who do have symptoms can
suffer fever, night sweats, chest pain, cough,
loss of appetite, and muscle and
joint aches within one to three weeks of
infection. Most people do recover fully,
but some are plagued by fatigue and aches for
as long as a year. In the worst
cases, valley fever can spread from the lungs
into the skin, bones, brain or other
organs [such as the meninges, causing
meningitis] and can be life-threatening,
requiring anti-fungal therapy.
Valley fever rates are highest among the
elderly, striking 88 out of 100,000 in that
population. By contrast, the rate is only about
40 out of every 100,000
middle-aged Arizonans.
Pinal reports the highest rate of all counties,
at 53.8 cases per 100,000 people,
followed by Pima, at 46.8. Maricopa comes in
third, with 44.9 cases. Statewide,
valley fever strikes 40.6 out of every 100,000
people. In addition to age, desert
construction and new residents from outside the
Southwest, other factors blamed
for the increase include more immunosuppressed
people s those with organ
transplants, cancer and HIV s and better
reporting of the disease, health officials
said.
At least part of the steep rise in valley fever
seen in Arizona since the mid-'90s
may be due to new rules requiring that test
results be reported directly to state
and county health departments by laboratories,
rather than through physicians.
"We don't have to wait anymore for doctors to
get around to it," Marshall said.
(Table included in article: 1999 Valley Fever
cases and rates in Arizona reported by
county)
County Total cases Rate per 100,000 population
Apache 1 1.5
Cochise 3 2.4
Coconino 8 6.5
Gila 10 19.2
Graham 6 16.8
Greenlee 0 0
La Paz 5 2.0
Maricopa 1,309 44.9
Mojave 22 15.4
Navajo 7 7.5
Pima 396 46.8
Pinal 89 53.8
Santa Cruz 1 2.6
Yavapai 9 5.8
Yuma 6 4.3
SIGHTINGS HOMEPAGE
www.sightings.com
-- Observer (observer@lots.to.observe), May 09, 2000.