Dad died from coronavirus and sister may be next, N.J. woman fears

ingrid_francisco_rodriguez

Francisco Rodriguez, 75, with his wife Ingrid. On March 29, Francisco died from complications with the coronavirus.Courtesy of Paola Rodriguez

Still reeling from the death of her father from complications with the coronavirus, Paola Rodriguez braces herself for another death in the family, as her sister clings to life in a Summit hospital.

After battling the brutal symptoms of the coronavirus, Francisco Rodriguez, 75, died in his Linden home from a pulmonary embolism on March 29, his daughter said. The results of a test that came in Wednesday showed he was positive for COVID-19, the illness caused by the coronavirus, she said.

The morning of Francisco’s death, Paola Rodriguez raced to his home with her daughter, who went inside while Paola stayed outside because she is immunocompromised. She waited tensely as paramedics entered the house. Then firefighters. Then more medics.

Finally, her daughter came out and told her.

“That was it,” said Paolo Rodriguez. “My father was gone.”

But Paola Rodriguez had no time to mourn her father. Her sister Maria Derius Rodriguez, 54, had been taken to Overlook Medical Center on March 19 and diagnosed with pneumonia. The day after she arrived at the hospital, Maria was taken to the intensive care unit and placed on a ventilator that has kept her alive as her lungs struggle to take in air.

maria_rodriguez

Maria Derius Rodriguez, 55, has been in the hospital on a ventilator for nearly three weeks. Her father Francisco died March 29 from complications with the coronavirus.

Nearly three weeks later, Maria remains on the ventilator and is not responsive. Doctors have told Paola Rodriguez and Maria’s husband and two children to prepare for the worst.

Through the pixels of an iPad held to Maria’s face by a hospital worker clad in full-body protective gear, Maria’s family tearfully said their goodbyes on Wednesday. Framed by tubes and medical equipment, Maria’s eyes flickered at the sound of her family’s voices.

“She opened her eyes to the sound of our voice,” said Rodriguez.

The barrage of tragedy has hit Rodriguez and her family in swift and cruel succession, starting March 14, when her brother-in-law complained of a headache and chills, she said. Despite the coronavirus pandemic that was infecting more and more people by the day, Maria’s brother-in-law was refused a COVID-19 test, she said.

Days after her brother-in-law visited her parents in their Linden home, the first of Francisco’s symptoms came abruptly.

“My mother called me and said ‘Something so weird happened,’” said Rodriguez. “'Your father was in the bathroom and he fainted.'” In their 56 years of marriage, Ingrid Rodriguez had never seen that happen to her husband. Francisco was a healthy man, with no underlying health conditions, said his daughter.

As the days went on, Francisco’s condition worsened, as he developed severe chills, a low-grade persistent fever and lost his appetite. At night, Francisco would be delirious with fever, talking to himself in bed, said Rodriguez.

“Throughout the week, my father just kept getting worse," said Rodriguez.

At 4 a.m. March 28, much like he did every morning, Francisco got up and shaved his face, a daily ritual he had neglected as he grew weaker and more sick. The next morning, Francisco’s face was “white as a paper,” Rodriguez’s mother told her. Medics arrived, but it was too late. At 11 a.m. March 29, Francisco was pronounced dead.

Much like her brother-in-law, Rodriguez’s father was not able to be tested for the coronavirus. Doctors told him to assume he had the virus, to stay home so he wouldn’t infect others, and to only go to the emergency room if he had a fever above 101 degrees and trouble breathing.

It was only after he died that Francisco was tested for the deadly virus.

Entire families across New Jersey have been impacted by the coronavirus’ deadly toll. A husband and wife from Palisades Park died alone in the same hospital, a week apart. One family from Freehold ravaged by the virus lost four members. A Kearny woman, who cared for her son who had Down Syndrome, died just nine days before the virus also claimed her son’s life.

In one of the harsh changes forced by the virus and facing families across the world, Rodriguez and her family were unable to bid her father farewell, as they were all sick or in quarantine and limited by strict social distancing rules. Francisco was cremated April 3.

“None of us were able to go see his body," said Rodriguez. "We weren’t able to have a proper ceremony. The last one to see him was my mother and my daughter.”

Now, Rodriguez and her family wait to see if Maria will pull through, beating what doctors say are low odds that her body will remember how to breathe again. In the time since Francisco’s passing, Rodriguez’s mother, brother-in-law, niece and nephew have all tested positive for the coronavirus, she said.

None of them have shown severe symptoms and are all in self-quarantine.

Doctors have told the family that they can attempt breathing trials for Maria, to see if she will breathe on her own again, or to keep her on the ventilator. Since Monday, doctors have tried to lower the sedation administered to Maria to see how she responds.

But the prognosis is grim, with doctors telling the family that Maria was not responsive to the trials Tuesday, said Rodriguez.

“They don’t think she’s going to make it,” she said. “The doctor feels that if they try to do the breathing trials, she might not be able to resist being off of the ventilator.”

For now, the family plays a heart-rending waiting game to see if Maria will recover, separated by the virus, despite their closeness. Rodriguez, a teacher, lives in Rahway, across the street from Maria and down the block from another sister. Three of four sisters live in Rahway, which neighbors Linden, where their parents lived.

When her father died, Rodriguez wanted nothing more than to embrace her family and comfort each other. She hopes that her story serves as a reminder to obey social distancing rules, as difficult, painful and unfair as they may feel.

“I was dying to go next door to my sister," said Rodriguez, fighting tears. "To go hug her. And my niece and my brother-in-law. To mourn together. And we can’t do it because we know what this is.”

Tell us your coronavirus stories, whether it’s a news tip, a topic you want us to cover, or a personal story you want to share.

If you would like updates on New Jersey-specific coronavirus news, subscribe to our Coronavirus in N.J. newsletter.

Rodrigo Torrejon may be reached at rtorrejon@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @rodrigotorrejon.

If you purchase a product or register for an account through a link on our site, we may receive compensation. By using this site, you consent to our User Agreement and agree that your clicks, interactions, and personal information may be collected, recorded, and/or stored by us and social media and other third-party partners in accordance with our Privacy Policy.