Overview
- Chiranjeevi Kolla died on May 5 in Walnut Creek after nearly 30 days in the Kaiser Permanente ICU on a ventilator.
- He first developed a cough and flu-like illness in early April, and doctors initially suspected severe pneumonia before tests confirmed Valley fever.
- Valley fever, or coccidioidomycosis, is caught by inhaling Coccidioides spores from dry soil in the U.S. Southwest, not from other people.
- A family GoFundMe seeks $300,000 for hospital bills, funeral rites in the U.S. and India, and living and education costs for his wife, Pavani Marella, and their five-year-old son.
- Doctors and the CDC note that symptoms can mirror common respiratory infections, so people in affected regions should ask about testing if a cough and fever persist after dust exposure.