Clearing the Fog of War

West Nile case confirmed in San Antonio

A San Antonio man infected with West Nile virus was hospitalized at San Antonio Military Medical Center, military officials said Wednesday, adding they also had found the mosquitoes carrying the virus in water sources at Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston.

The patient, described only as an older man, was in stable condition late Wednesday at SAMMC, but the military is also treating a second, suspected case as an outpatient, this one a woman, said spokesman Dewey Mitchell.

“I think he is improving,” Mitchell said, of the confirmed case. “I don't know if he is totally out of the woods.”

The Texas Department of State Health Services recently issued a statewide alert, warning of a spike in West Nile cases – particularly in North Texas. Statewide, 158 people have been infected by the mosquito-borne virus, and five have died. About two-thirds of the cases were in the Dallas-Fort Worth area and included two deaths.

It was unclear if civilian health officials were looking into any other potential cases. Officials with the Metropolitan Health District were unavailable for comment late Wednesday. The state health department listed only one case in Bexar County.

People get West Nile infections from mosquitoes, which in turn pick up the virus after feeding on birds and mammals. While the vast majority of cases are mild and clear on their own, West Nile can be serious and even fatal if it invades the nervous system.

Symptoms can range from fever, headache, body ache, nausea and drowsiness in the mild form, to stiff neck, visual problems, body tremors, mental confusion, memory loss and seizures in the serious form.

Read more: http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/military/article/West-Nile-case-confirmed-in-SA-3774160.php#ixzz23lHCHVVL

 

San Antonio singer did not go to Iraq, officer claims

Timothy Poe, a country crooner from San Antonio accused of lying on national television about being badly wounded in Afghanistan, was challenged Thursday over claims that he was shot in one leg while in Iraq.

The Minnesota National Guard charged that the story, told last month to a Dallas television station, wasn't true, saying its records showed that Poe, 35, reported to training at Camp Shelby, Miss., in 2005 but didn't go to Iraq because of a “medical condition” that officials didn't identify.

“There is no official record that Mr. Poe deployed to Iraq and sustained injuries in combat,” said Lt. Col. Kevin Olson, a Minnesota Guard spokesman.

Poe became an overnight sensation Monday when he was featured in a segment of NBC's “America's Got Talent.” He told the judges and the national television audience at an Austin audition of suffering back and head injuries in a 2009 firefight in Afghanistan.

The Guard said Poe went home with an ear problem after just more than a month in the war zone, and others who said they served with him called his story an outright lie.

Poe could not be reached despite multiple calls during the past two days. The Express-News asked him to allow San Antonio Military Medical Center, where he was treated from September 2009 until his medical discharge in May 2011, to release information about his treatment. So many messages had been left on the phone that its storage capacity was full.

SAMMC has yet to release any documents, but the Minnesota National Guard provided records that in some cases appeared to support parts of Poe's story and undermine other claims he has made.

The Guard said Poe gave the records to the media. After examining them, Olson said, “He appears to lack the required justification to conclusively prove his injuries are combat-related. Absent this lack of supporting justification, it's impossible to prove Mr. Poe's injuries resulted from combat action.”

Read more: http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/military/article/S-A-singer-did-not-go-to-Iraq-officer-claims-3617018.php#ixzz1ylkdK3TS

 

'Talent' singer's injuries in war disputed

A San Antonio singer who told viewers of “America's Got Talent” on Monday that he was flown out of Afghanistan after being badly injured in a grenade blast was actually evacuated for an ear problem, according to the National Guard.

Timothy Michael Poe, a sergeant who delivered supplies, had been in Afghanistan for just over a month in summer 2009, Master Sgt. Daniel Ewer, a Minnesota National Guard spokesman, said Wednesday.

“There's a medical issue with his ears,” he said, adding he had no additional information.

A news release issued by the guard countered Poe's claim of having been injured in Afghanistan, sparking a flurry of stories, blogs and comments on the Internet accusing him of manufacturing the tale.

Neither Poe nor two family members returned phone messages.

Poe was treated at San Antonio Military Medical Center, but spokesman Dewey Mitchell said he could not reveal the content of medical records without Poe's permission.

Mitchell said Poe was assigned to Fort Sam Houston's Warrior Transition Battalion and was there from September 2009 until he was medically retired in May 2011.

U.S. Army North spokesman Don Manuszewski confirmed that Poe used the Warrior and Family Support Center. The director of the facility, Judith Markelz, said she vaguely remembered him.

The San Antonio Express-News left a message on Poe's phone asking him to give SAMMC permission to release his records.

Another Minnesota Guard spokesman, Lt. Col. Kevin Olson, said Wednesday that Poe told him in a message that “he would like to discuss with me his case and provide more information.”

“I returned his call and he did not pick up and he did not return my call,” Olson said.

Read more: http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/military/article/Talent-singer-s-injuries-in-war-disputed-3614673.php#ixzz1yliMGUz3