Covid-19: Woman 'living in fear' after four relatives die

A woman who has lost four relatives to coronavirus has described the disease as like a "sniper" waiting to strike.

Sarah Ayers' father and aunt died with Covid-19 in 2020 and two of her uncles died in January after testing positive.

The healthcare worker from Cleethorpes said: "I live in fear of what's going to happen next [and] who it's going to take away from me."

She urged people to follow lockdown rules after the "devastating" impact the virus has had on her family.

"I understand that people desire to be with their friends and family," she said.

"I would give anything to be with mine right now, but I can't take that risk, I can't put them at risk because I can't lose anybody else.

"It feels like Covid is a little sniper waiting behind the bushes, waiting for my family to come outside and then it's going to get them."

Mrs Ayers' 81-year-old aunt, June, was the first member of her family to die with the virus in March 2020.

Her 75-year-old father, John, died on 8 April, having also tested positive.

She travelled to Wiltshire for his funeral but due to restrictions in place at the time there had been "no music, no celebration, no wake, no getting together and talking about him".

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In January, her uncles David, 62, and John, 72, died within days of each other after testing positive for coronavirus.

"The truly heartbreaking thing about it all is that we as a family are very close and to not be there when your loved ones are having their final moments is really difficult," she said.

Mrs Ayers said she did not want sympathy, but wanted people to understand the impact of Covid on the families left behind.

"It robs you of being with your loved ones at their final moments, it robs you of giving them the send-off they deserve and it robs you of grieving properly with your family," she said.

"My mum has lost her husband, both of her brothers and a sister-in-law and I can't help because I am 200 miles away.

"I can phone her but it's not the same as putting my arm around her."

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