A heartbroken son told of his despair as he couldn't be with his mother who died of COVID-19 in a Dublin nursing home in the early hours of yesterday morning.
Brian Connell, who lives in New Jersey, lost his mother Angela who died in Marymount Nursing Home in Lucan at 2am on Friday morning.
Angela sadly deteriorated rapidly after making some encouraging progress in her battle against the killer bug, Dublin Live reports.
Brain told RTE Radio 1's Liveline that his five siblings had been taking care of his mother in recent years.
He said: "It was the virus, yes, she was diagnosed with it last Friday, over a week ago.
“I have five sisters Evelyn, Jean, Anne, Patricia and Niamh and they’re all local around Dublin and they’ve been taking such good care of my mother and indeed my father when he was around.
“At the end they were allowed to be with my mother for a short period of time, limited to one or two people and she passed at about 2am [on Friday] morning and thankfully two of my sisters were there with her.
“I can only imagine the scene, they’re all fully suited with all the protective gear."
Sadly, Brian revealed that his first instinct was to rush home, but due to the coronavirus lockdown he cannot do that.
“I keep going upstairs to take the suitcase down off the shelf and get to the airport," Brian said.
"That’s like the knee-jerk reaction, as I did when my father was ill.
"My instincts tell me to get a bag and head for the airport to be with my family at this time but that’s not going to happen.
"And that’s really what’s frustrating for me and I know many people have bigger problems and health problems and so on, but that’s just what’s weighing on my mind today, that I just can’t be there, be with the family and support them and start the [mourning] process."
