Spanish woman who ‘died’ of COVID returned 10 days later: newspaper

MADRID (Reuters) – An 85-year-old woman whose family believes she died of a coronavirus surprised her relatives when she returned to her nursing home nine days after being told she had been buried, a newspaper reported on Sunday.

After a confusion of names, Rogelia Blanco’s family was informed that the retiree died of COVID-19 on January 13 and her funeral was on the following day, reported the newspaper La Voz de Galicia. Due to coronavirus protocols, they were unable to attend.

So when she got back in shape and right back at the asylum in Xove, northern Spain, on Saturday, where her husband Ramón Blanco also lived, he was thrilled, the newspaper said.

“I couldn’t believe it. I was crying after my wife’s death, ”he said, adding that it was the woman who shared the room with Blanco who died.

The newspaper quoted the Fundación San Rosendo, which runs the nursing home, saying the mistake occurred when Blanco and other residents who tested positive for COVID-19 were transferred to another nursing home on December 29 for specialized treatment.

“Among the transferred elderly were two women who were placed in the same room,” said the foundation, according to La Voz de Galicia. They were transferred to the Os Gozos residence in Pereiro de Aguiar, 223 km (139 miles) from Xove.

“An identification error during the process of transferring Xove to Pereiro de Aguiar led to the death of one of them certified on January 13, although the identity was wrongly assigned,” he said.

The foundation regretted the “unfortunate incident”, the newspaper said, citing the statement, which added: “This is a unique event, among the more than 100 transfers made since last December to Os Gozos”.

A court has been informed to reverse the error caused by Blanco’s death, the statement said. The foundation did not immediately respond to a request from Reuters for comment.