“May Allah never give anybody such a painful death”

The wife of a sports journalist in Cox's Bazar has died with coronavirus symptoms after several hospitals in Chattogram refused to treat her because she did not have a coronavirus test report.

Jebunnesa, 48, wife of Ziaul Karim, died in an ambulance at the entrance to Chattogram Medical College Hospital at around 10am on Monday.

The mother of four had previously been suffering from heart disease as well.

Ziaul and his family members have been suffering from coronavirus symptoms since June 1.

Due to the extreme hassle that people have to bear to get their coronavirus tests done, the journo and his family started taking some prescribed Covid-19 medications to improve their heath conditions.

All his family members, including Ziaul himself, recovered from the symptoms but his wife's health condition worsened.

On July 14, Jebunnesa was taken to the isolation ward of Cox's Bazar Sadar Hospital and was later referred to Chattogram for further treatment.

She was taken to Chattogram immediately by an ambulance.  

But several hospitals refused to treat her due to the lack of a coronavirus test report. She later died on a stretcher inside the ambulance that was carrying her.

Her grieving husband said, "Nobody in the hospitals where we went let us in. My better half died in front of me in that ambulance without receiving any treatment"

"All I could do was just helplessly watch her die in front of my very own eyes. May Allah never give anybody such a painful death," added Ziaul.

Later, Jebunnesa's funeral was held in her native village in Pekua upazlia of Cox's Bazar on Monday evening. She was laid to rest there as well.

Ziaul said, "I have no grudge against the behaviour that the private hospital authorities showed me as it is upon them who they will provide treatment and who they will not."

"The thing that makes me sad is that the CMCH authorities also behaved like those in the private hospitals," he added.