Martha Lillard
Martha Lillard | |
|---|---|
 Lillard in 1953 | |
| Born | June 8, 1948 Shawnee, Oklahoma, U.S. |
| Died | June 26, 2026 (aged 78) Shawnee, Oklahoma, U.S. |
| Known for | Last known person to use an iron lung in the United States |
| Spouse(s) | Ray Stapp Baha Salh (m. 2026) |
Martha Ann Lillard (June 8, 1948 – June 26, 2026) was an American polio survivor who, following Paul Alexander's death, became the last known person in the United States who still relied on an iron lung. She contracted polio in 1953, when she was five years old.[1]
Early life
[edit]Martha Ann Lillard was born on June 8, 1948, in Shawnee, Oklahoma.[2][3] She had a sister named Cindy and a brother-in-law named Daryl.[4]
Life in the iron lung
[edit]Lillard celebrated her fifth birthday on June 8, 1953, with a party at Joyland, an amusement park in Kansas. On June 17, 1953, she woke up with a sore throat and pain in her neck. Her family took her to the hospital, where she was diagnosed with polio.[5]
Later, she spent six months in the hospital, placed in a negative pressure ventilator informally called the iron lung, to help her breathe. In the end, she chose to use the iron lung for the rest of her life, sleeping in it nightly.[5] In an NBC News interview in 2012, she said that when she was first put in the iron lung, "it was a huge relief."[6] She said of the ventilator, "That's what keeps me healthy. That's what heals me. That's what allows me to breathe the next day."[3]
Early in the 21st century, Lillard became trapped in her iron lung when an ice storm came through Oklahoma and her emergency generator failed to start, leaving her trapped in the device without heat. She struggled to call 911. She described the experience as "like being buried alive almost, you know – it's so scary."[7]
After the death of Paul Alexander on March 11, 2024, Lillard became the last known person in the United States to still rely on an iron lung.[8]
In 2025, Lillard suffered an episode when she struggled to breathe when a tornado caused a power outage and her generator failed. Her husband saved her life when he gave her mouth-to-mouth resuscitation until emergency assistance arrived.[9]
Personal life and death
[edit]Lillard spent much of her time alone. She painted, watched old Hollywood movies, and took care of her beagles. She sought isolation throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, seeing her relatives in the evenings.[1]
She was homeschooled for most of her childhood and unable to participate in most extracurricular activities, although she still remembered wanting to go camping with her siblings. She could not have children or hold a steady job because of her physical limitations.[1] However, she was married twice.[9] Lillard was married to Ray Stapp,[10] whom she said that she met in 1989 and was with for 28 years until he was moved to a nursing home.[7] She met her second husband online and married him in February of 2026[9] after 22 years of courtship.[11]
In a 2021 interview segment about her by National Public Radio, Radio Diaries, and All Things Considered, she said she was having trouble finding replacement parts to keep her machine running.[6]
Lillard died on June 26, 2026, at the age of 78.[9]
References
[edit]- 1 2 3 Kelly, Erin (October 25, 2021). "Decades after polio, Martha is among the last to still rely on an iron lung to breathe". NPR. Archived from the original on March 13, 2024. Retrieved April 14, 2024.
- ↑ "Martha Ann Lillard Essay – 1564 Words | Internet Public Library". www.ipl.org. Archived from the original on June 29, 2022. Retrieved April 14, 2024.
- 1 2 "60 years in an iron lung: US polio survivor worries about new global threat". NBC News. November 30, 2013. Archived from the original on April 4, 2024. Retrieved April 16, 2024.
- ↑ "Woman who once got trapped in iron lung said 'it's like being buried alive'". LADbible. July 4, 2023. Archived from the original on March 13, 2024. Retrieved April 14, 2024.
- 1 2 Synar, Edwyna (November 26, 2021). "Remember the Ladies: Survival in an iron lung". Muskogee Phoenix. Archived from the original on November 27, 2021. Retrieved April 14, 2024.
- 1 2 Moreno, Lucas (March 17, 2024). "The American woman is the only person who still lives with an iron lung". Mediarun Search. Archived from the original on March 17, 2024. Retrieved April 14, 2024.
- 1 2 "My Iron Lung (Revisited)". Radio Diaries. March 21, 2024. Archived from the original on May 3, 2024. Retrieved April 14, 2024.
- ↑ Jiménez, Jesus (March 13, 2024). "Lawyer, Author and TikTok Star Spent 72 Years in an Iron Lung". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on March 13, 2024. Retrieved April 14, 2024.
- 1 2 3 4 Meyer, Ali (July 8, 2026). "Oklahoma woman, the last American in an iron lung, dies at 78". Oklahoma News 4. Retrieved July 8, 2026.
- ↑ "Porter Stapp: Jan 3, 1930-Nov 14, 2016". July 10, 2026. Retrieved July 10, 2026.
- ↑ "Martha Ann Lillard". July 2, 2026. Retrieved July 10, 2026.
