WATSONVILLE—The man who died at Watsonville Community Hospital on March 20 after testing positive for COVID-19 was fighting diabetes, his family said in a Facebook post over the weekend.
The man in his early 50s was believed to be a resident of Las Lomas, a small community of roughly 3,000 near the northern tip of Monterey County.
The Pajaronian is not publishing the man’s name out of respect to the family.
His brother in a Facebook post on March 20 said the man died a day after testing positive for the disease that has sickened thousands worldwide.
Two sources have confirmed the claims posted to the social media website. They asked to speak on condition of anonymity out of respect to the family.
Though health officials believe COVID-19 is non-lethal for most people, they say the virus is particularly dangerous for older adults and people with pre-existing health conditions such as diabetes, liver, lung and heart disease and cancer.
Halsen Healthcare CEO Dan Brothman, whose company owns WCH, confirmed the death the following morning but did not release any information about the victim.
Two sources, however, said the victim was not from Santa Cruz County. They were speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not allowed to speak publicly on the matter.
Hours later, Monterey County health officials announced their first death of a county resident that had been diagnosed with COVID-19.
Officials said the victim was an “adult individual” who had an “underlying health condition” that made them more susceptible to the highly-contagious virus.
They released no other information on the victim in an effort to “protect the family’s privacy at this very difficulty(sic) time.”
A source, however, said that death was indeed the confirmed death at WCH. They were speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not allowed to speak publicly on the matter.
Brothman said WCH is following all the guidelines from the county health officer and that they are working in unison with nearby Dominican Hospital.
“We’re all very prepared,” Brothman said. “We’ve done training and we’ve stockpiled supplies. We’re ready to serve the people of Watsonville. Our hearts go out to the family [of the victim].”
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention those at high-risk for severe illness from COVID-19 include:
• People 65 and older
• People who live in a nursing home or long-term care facility
• People with chronic lung disease or moderate to severe asthma
• People who have heart disease with complications
• People who are immunocompromised including cancer treatment
• People of any age with severe obesity or certain underlying medical conditions, particularly if not well controlled, such as those with diabetes, renal failure or liver disease
People who are pregnant should also be monitored since they are known to be at risk with severe viral illness, however, to date data on COVID-19 has not shown increased risk.
Editor’s note: Todd Guild contributed to this report.
