An 88-year-old church choir singer died after contracting coronavirus at a restaurant from a skier returning from Italy, according to reports.
Sky News confirmed that Darrell Blakeley, from Middleton, England, died on Friday in hospital.
The retiree had been admitted to hospital on March 3 with sepsis. He was then placed in quarantine as a result of having had contact in a restaurant with “a skier who had returned from Italy”.
A statement from his local church said he has initially tested negative for COVID-19, but a week later he tested positive. A short time later he became extremely unwell and died.
St Michael’s Church is Blakeley’s hometown of Middleton said he had attended services twice a week for more than 50 years.
It said: “Darrell was a faithful man at St Michael’s for over 50 years, he sang in the choir with a beautiful voice, described by so many as a gracious gentleman who is going to be sadly missed. RIP Darrell.”
Reverend Jackie Calow, meanwhile, said that Darrell had stopped going to church the past month as he battled an underlying condition. She explained how after the grandfather had been isolated in hospital, his family could only visit him in hazmat suits that cause discomfort in breathing after 15 minutes.
“After 15 minutes I was struggling to breathe properly in it,” Blakeley’s son confirmed to the Manchester Evening News.
“Tears were streaming down my face. The hospital don’t like anyone to stay longer than 15 minutes. It took longer to remove the equipment than being with my dad. It sounds awful, seeing him was the most terrifying thing I have ever done.”
Blakeley’s daughter-in-law, Allie Crew, wrote on Facebook: “The hospital were really super and tried to support us as much as possible, their kindness helped a lot.
“Not being able to sit with him was very hard for us. He remained in quarantine in an air locked room.
“This has been quite a difficult and tragic death, so send love and light.”
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