Coronavirus infects 9 Alabama family members, kills 3

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As the U.S. continues to grapple with the coronavirus epidemic, an Alabama family is feeling its worst effects first hand. Nine members of one Gadsden family have been infected with COVID-19, three of whom recently died.

“People aren’t taking this virus seriously,” Tyrone Posey, who lost his wife, Phacethia, to the virus last Monday, told The Gadsden Times. He was also infected but is recovering, according to AL.com. 

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The deaths occurred in members of the Woods, Posey and Porter families. Phacethia Posey, who suffered from rheumatoid arthritis, her father, Billy Ray Woods, and cousin Michael Woods all died after contracting the virus that causes COVID-19. Billy Ray Woods and Micheal Woods both died on Saturday.

“She was weak. She didn’t want to eat or drink. It was just draining her. The virus attacked her respiratory system, and it progressed until she was hospitalized,” before killing her, Tyrone Posey said of his wife.

In mid-March, Tyrone Posey’s son, Tyrone Posey Jr., was reportedly the first to become infected, later sickening his father and mother, according to AL.com. Soon after, other family members were sickened, totaling nine infections.

“Everything happened quickly,” Phacethia Posey’s sister, Kyra Porter, said. (iStock)

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“Everything happened quickly,” Phacethia Posey’s sister, Kyra Porter, told the news outlet. Other sickened family members include Phacethia’s mother, Barbara Woods, and her other sister Johnjalene Woods. Kyra Porter’s husband, Tony, also contracted the virus, according to The Gadsden Times.

Other families across the nation have been affected similarly by the virus, including a New Jersey family who in March lost four members within days of each other.