A 20-year-old Spanish soccer coach who was told by doctors he had “no need to worry” died a few days later from the coronavirus.
Francisco Garcia, a coach of a youth soccer team, died a few days after developing symptoms on March 6, which were later identified as complications of the coronavirus, according to his family.
“His doctor told him to take paracetamol and sent him home and said there was no need to worry,” his stepfather, Juan Fernandez, told the Sun on Wednesday.
Fernandez said his stepson’s condition worsened overnight, so they went back to the health center where he got antibiotics and was told again to go back home.
“We didn’t think anything was really wrong, and nor did they, then,” Fernandez said. “But, by the next day, he couldn’t stand up properly, and he had a fever. We knew it was a bit more serious than a cold or the flu, so we drove him to Carlos Haya Hospital where they admitted him immediately and put him on a ventilator.”
“That was the last time Irene and I saw him,” he added.
Doctors ran tests on Garcia and found that he not only had the coronavirus but also leukemia.
“We knew coronavirus was killing people, but we never thought it would kill Francis,” Fernandez said. “We were told he had died on Sunday. All we had over those four days was telephone contact with the hospital. We couldn’t speak to Francis, we didn’t see him, and we couldn’t pay our last respects. He was taken to the cemetery without us being able to say goodbye to him.”
His stepfather said that Garcia’s death was “proof that this virus needs to be taken deadly seriously.” “He went from having a sore throat and feeling a bit poorly to being unable to stand on his own two feet in just four days,” he added.
So far, there have been nearly 18,000 confirmed cases of coronavirus in Spain, according to Johns Hopkins University. Garcia is one of the youngest people to die from the virus.
A recent study from Italy showed that 99% of people who die from the coronavirus have at least one previous medical condition. The average age of death in the study was 80 years old.
