Add The California Post on Google A wife found her husband of nearly half a century comatose on the floor of her Anaheim home last month and never spoke to him again after he succumbed to a widely known deadly disease.
Daniel Clavel, a 61-year-old father of five and grandfather to 13, died last week after he contracted West Nile Virus.
The tragedy is considered all the more devastating, his wife says, because Daniel beat the odds after a vicious motorcycle crash in 2013 nearly left him paralyzed.
“They said he’d never walk again, and we didn’t think he’d make it but he did,” Tracey, his wife of 43 years, told ABC 7. “So that’s why this situation is even harder because he beat the odds of the motorcycle accident, but a mosquito took him, and I don’t understand it.”
Tracey said her husband began feeling unwell last month. The family believed he may have the flu or another ailment, but he developed a rash and continued experiencing symptoms. A rash is a common symptom of West Nile Virus, along with fever, headache, body aches, joint pains, vomiting, and diarrhea.
One day, Tracey found her husband lying on the floor unconscious. An ambulance rushed over to take him to the hospital and intubated him.
“He just never regained consciousness. The ambulance came, took him, he was desaturated, so then they had to intubate him and I never saw him again. He never got to tell me he loved me. Never got to hug me again,” she said.
Daniel died last week after 24 days in the ICU. Doctors tested him for West Nile virus, and he came back positive.
Daniel’s story is one Tracey hopes that SoCal residents take seriously as West Nile-infected mosquitos zip around the area.
“He left us for people to be aware,” Tracey said.
Brian Brannon of the Orange County Mosquito and Vector Control District told ABC 7 that Orange County has recorded its highest number of mosquitoes carrying West Nile virus in history this year, with 757 positive samples detected. Anaheim has the most positive samples in the county with 165.
“We’re seeing a lot of activity in Anaheim, Fullerton, Buena Park, even Los Alamitos. It’s really spreading mostly throughout the west side of Orange County, but it’s starting to go down a little south and a little bit east, too,” Brannon said.
Residents are advised to wear insect repellent, avoid standing water, and cover up during peak mosquito hours like dusk and dawn.
Most people infected with West Nile virus do not develop symptoms, but those who do will feel them around two to six days after a bite.
The Orange County Health Care Agency said it is investigating Daniel Clavel’s death. Its website does not list his death but notes there have been 21 cases in the area this year.
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