Friend remembers swine flu victimInfluenza has been confirmed in the death of Kerby Brandon of Powell, 47. Brandon was hospitalized at Powell Valley Hospital on Nov. 10 and life-flighted the following day to St. Vincent Healthcare in Billings. He died there on Friday. Brandon's death was caused by Influenza A, presumably the swine (novel H1N1) flu, Dr. Charles Jamieson, Park County Health Officer, said in a release on Wednesday.

“It was sure a shock,” said Janis Adams of Powell, who, along with her husband, Ron, was a former neighbor to Brandon.

“Kerby was our very first friend here,” Adams said. “He was extremely friendly, very encouraging and the best neighbor we ever had.

“We heard Wednesday night he was real sick and was life-flighted to Billings,” she added. There, doctors' extensive efforts to stabilize him and give him the time he needed to recover failed.

“He was just over here two weeks ago hunting ducks with his little boy and looking at Ron's big deer,” Adams said. “Fairly often, we'd get a call in the afternoon, and he'd say, ‘Hey, whatcha doing?' We'll miss that.”

State Epidemiologist Dr. Tracy Murphy confirmed Brandon's death was the 10th fatality in Wyoming caused by influenza since the first case of H1N1 was diagnosed in the state in May. Nine of those were from influenza A, all of which are believed to be novel H1N1, Jamieson said.

A news release from the Wyoming Health Department on Wednesday said Brandon had no identified underlying medical conditions that put him at greater risk complications from influenza.

A Natrona County man with underlying medical conditions was the ninth flu victim in the state, the release said.

“This should, sadly, remind us all that H1N1 is in Park County and we need to do all we can to prevent its spread and to protect ourselves from its unpredictable complications,” Jamieson said. “Most people who contract H1N1 can manage the infection with common sense of fever management, hydration and watching for worsening symptoms.

“If you have respiratory distress (difficulty breathing), unmanageable fever or worries of dehydration, it is imperative that you seek medical care.

“If you have any underlying medical conditions (asthma, diabetes, COPD) it is recommended that you seek medical care sooner.”

Adams said she didn't know whether Brandon had any medical conditions that put him at greater risk of complications from the flu.

She guessed, based on things she'd heard, that he might have waited too long to seek medical help.

“I'm sure he just thought he could ignore it and it would go away,” she said.

“He worked and played hard,” she added. “Kerby really had fun, and he went fast with everything he did — his motorcycle, his pickups and his airplane. We'd say, ‘Kerby, you're going to kill yourself.' We sure never thought he'd die of the flu.”

She said the word that best described Brandon was “encourager.”

“He was just kind of a cheerleader for cheering you on,” she said.

His family made sure that encouragement didn't end with his death.

Adams said one of his sisters asked for several volunteers among the approximately 550 people who attended his funeral Wednesday morning. She asked for people who had been his neighbors in Powell, Montana, Wyoming and North Dakota, and people who had hunted with him or flown with him in his airplane.

When several people stepped forward, “she gave them each a $100 bill and told them to help someone with that money and make it grow. That was a really neat thing.”