Fil-Am is 1st COVID-19 related death in LA County —report

A Filipino-American woman was the first reported fatality linked to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Los Angeles County, according to a report of Los Angeles Times.

On March 9, 68-year old Loretta was found unresponsive by her husband Roddy, who immediately performed mouth-to-mouth resuscitation and chest compression to revive his wife after noticing the she did not have pulse.

Loretta, who was a breast cancer survivor and was suffering from diabetes, was rushed to Pomona Valley Hospital Medical Center. She had cardiac arrest four times, according to the report.

She was placed in isolation as the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health advised testing her for COVID-19 infection.

At 2:57 a.m. on March 10, Loretta died. Authorities confirmed that her test results were positive. Despite the results, the health department did not recommend 72-year-old Roddy to undergo test.

When he arrived at the hospital, he was isolated and questioned only and later discharged.

According the report, Loretta and Roddy celebrated their retirement from a 30-year career in advertising with a trip. They left their home in Orlando, Florida for the Philippines on February 4.

They traveled to Thailand and had layovers in Seoul on their way to the Philippines.

On March 8, the couple flew into Los Angeles International Airport. They planned to stay at Roddy’s sister’s house in Walnut for two nights and then fly back to Florida on March 10.

Loretta was exhausted after the trip that they decided to have a rest. On March 9, their children couldn’t get ahold of them until late in the afternoon.

“My dad texted me and my brother and said that he couldn’t wake up mom,” their daughter Rowena said.

“The only thing I remember from the text was him saying my mother didn’t have a pulse,” their son Rem said. —Joviland Rita/LBG, GMA News