Our first virus death

Passenger, 78, from Diamond Princess dies in Perth hospital

AN elderly Perth man has become the first person in Australia to die from the coronavirus after he contracted the virus aboard the Diamond Princess cruise ship.

Western Australia’s Chief Health Officer Dr Andrew Robertson yesterday confirmed the 78-year-old died at Perth’s Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital in the early hours of the morning. The man was diagnosed with COVID-19 about 10 days ago while in isolation at Howard Springs in the Northern Territory after being quarantined aboard the Diamond Princess and then flown out of Japan.

“Our condolences are with his family and unfortunately he is the first death we have had from coronavirus in Australia,”

Dr Robertson told reporters in Perth yesterday.

“He was in his late 70s, like many people in that age, they’re more likely to have other chronic conditions and it would obviously make being able to fight off this virus more difficult.”

He added that the elderly man’s death didn’t come as a surprise to doctors as it’s known COVID-19 can start off relatively mild before it progresses.

“It’s often the second week where people will deteriorate and get significant viral pneumonia,” Dr Robertson said.

The chief medical officer said the man had been in isolation ever since he was diagnosed and insisted there was no risk to the community or hospital staff. The man’s 79year-old wife was also diagnosed with the virus a few days ago and is in a stable condition in the same hospital.

It comes as the government defends its decision to ban foreign visitors entering Australia from Iran to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, rather than South Korea which has a much higher level of cases.