4 New Jersey Family Members Die After Contracting Coronavirus at a Recent Family Gathering

After contracting the coronavirus at a family gathering, a New Jersey mother, her two sons, and her daughter all died. Three other relatives remained hospitalized in critical condition. Fox News reported that it is believed that the novel coronavirus spread between relatives at a recent family gathering on March 10th.

An article by NJ.com reported that Vincent Fusco died Thursday at CentraState Medical Center in Freehold – as said by Roseann Paradiso Fodera, a cousin and the lawyer representing the Fusco family.

Vincent’s death comes just a day after his mother, Grace Fusco, 73, died at the same facility. His brother, Carmine Fusco, also died Wednesday at St. Luke’s University Hospital-Bethlehem Campus, in Fountain Hill, Pennsylvania. His sister, Rita-Fusco Jackson, 55, died last Friday at the hospital in New Jersey. Rita later tested positive for COVID-19 – making her the state’s second victim.

“To imagine a week ago to get a phone call like this — if someone told me this story, I wouldn’t believe it,” Paradiso Fodera said. “It’s inconceivable to me.”

According to reports, three other family members remained hospitalized in critical condition as of Wednesday. “Nineteen additional relatives, including spouses and children of those hospitalized, have been tested for the coronavirus and have quarantined themselves in their separate homes before results become available,” said Fox News.

“This has been devastating for all of us,” Elizabeth Fusco, 42, said before her brothers’ and mother’s deaths. “Our hearts are broken over losing our sister, Rita. We just need help in saving our family members with life-saving medication.”

Reports say that the family had ties to the first person to die after becoming infected with the coronavirus in New Jersey. However, his connection to the family was not clear.