Paul Alexander, a Texas man who contracted polio at age 6, which led him to spend the last 72 years in an iron lung for survival, has died, his brother and friends announced March 12 on a GoFundMe page set up to aid with expenses.
"I am so [in] gratitude to everybody who donated to my brother's fundraiser. It allowed him to live his last few years stress-free," Philip Alexander said. "It will also pay for his funeral during this difficult time."
The cause of death was not stated, but in a Feb. 26 TikTok video, his social media manager announced he had been rushed to the emergency room and tested positive for COVID-19. He died March 11.
Despite relying on the iron lung for survival since 1952, Mr. Alexander was still able to successfully obtain a law degree from the University of Texas at Austin and passed the bar in 1986, according to Wikipedia. He also published a book in 2020.