‘We lost half our family in less than two weeks’
A Gqeberha family — dealt a double blow when a mother and son died less than two weeks apart — are hoping their tragic story will inspire others to adhere to Covid-19 regulations and register for the jab.
Reza Ebrahim, 47, said yesterday that his only hope now was that his family’s pain would serve as a wake-up call to those still not taking the virus seriously.
Shaakir “Shaq” Ebrahim, 35, and his mother, Nerina Skuy, 68, were both admitted to hospital on July 21.
Skuy, the chief executive of the Apple Express, died two days later. She was buried on Wednesday.
Her son seemed to be on the road to recovery, until a week ago, when his condition started deteriorating rapidly and he died on Monday morning.
“I spoke to my brother at 9am on Friday [July 30] and he still asked me to bring him some things.
“Two hours later, a doctor phoned to tell me they were putting him on a ventilator,” Shaq’s older brother, Ebrahim, said.
He recalled how his brother’s condition had slowly improved in the week leading up to his death, and how they had all been looking forward to welcoming him back home.
“The day after he was admitted, I spoke to him.
“He sounded out of breath, like he had just come from the gym.
“Over the next few days we stayed in contact, and I was actually on my way to see him when I got a call from his phone.
“I was confused when a woman spoke on the other end, telling me my brother was going on a ventilator.
“We spoke two hours earlier and he was perfectly fine. She put me on speaker and I told Shaq that we loved him and all he had to do was take it easy and focus on getting better.
“He mumbled: ‘I love you’, and ‘I will see you later’. And those were the last words my brother said to me.”
On Monday, the hospital notified Ebrahim that his brother’s condition was deteriorating, and shortly after 5pm the family was notified of his death.
“My daughters lost their cool uncle.
“He was the seven-foot tall cool uncle that always gave them bear hugs and promised to take them out partying when they were old enough.
“Our whole family is still in shock. We lost half our family in less than two weeks.”
While collecting Shaq’s personal items from the hospital this week, Ebrahim said he could see the pure exhaustion on the faces of the staff working in the Covid-19 ward.
As he came out with the black bag containing his brother’s belongings, he saw a number of other families carrying the same bags.
“I walked past these people, and we just nodded at each other, because we understand each other’s situation.
“We all just went through the same trauma.”
Though the family is still reeling from the combined loss, Ebrahim hopes their pain will bring others to their senses, and he hopes to see more people take care of themselves and their loved ones.
“People still aren’t taking this thing seriously.
“People are dying, and there are still those who don’t believe in the vaccine and taking the extra precautions to protect themselves and their loved ones.
“Even if you don’t do it for yourself, then do it for your family. Because until you’ve lost someone like this, you can’t understand the devastation it causes,” he said.