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The Guardian - US
The Guardian - US
World
Guardian staff

Wisconsin woman set to celebrate 109th birthday after fighting off Covid-19

Ruth Stryzewski will turn 109 on 20 February.
Ruth Stryzewski will turn 109 on 20 February. Photograph: RuthBlack/Getty Images/iStockphoto

A 108-year-old American woman has survived a battle with the coronavirus and is planning to celebrate her 109th birthday with family and friends.

The pandemic has ravaged the US and cost almost 400,000 lives but Ruth Stryzewski of Oshkosh, Wisconsin, will not be among that number, despite the virus taking a disproportionate toll on the elderly.

After fighting the virus in isolation for several weeks, Stryzewski has emerged with no ill effects and appears to be making a full recovery, local TV station ABC 13 reported.

“Remarkably at this age, she was able to fight through that horrible virus and is doing very well today,” Ingrid Garrison, an activities specialist at Parkview health center, told the TV station.

“She’s gaining her strength back and becoming the old Ruth we knew.”

Stryzewski seems to have had relatively mild symptoms during her infection and did not require hospitalisation.

She will now be free to celebrate her 109th birthday on 20 February.

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