LONDON (AP) – Tom Moore, the 100-year World War II veteran who kept the British public in the early days of the coronavirus pandemic spellbound with his fundraisers, has been hospitalized with COVID-19, his daughter said on Sunday.
Hannah Ingram-Moore revealed in a statement on Twitter that her father, commonly known as Captain Tom, has been admitted to Bedford Hospital because he needed “extra help” with his breathing.
She said that her father had been treated for pneumonia in recent weeks and that he had tested positive for the corona virus last week.
She said he is being treated in a ward, not an intensive care unit.
“The medical care he has received in recent weeks has been remarkable and we know that the wonderful staff at Bedford Hospital will do everything they can to put him at ease and hopefully return home as soon as possible,” she said .
Moore became an emblem of hope in the first weeks of the pandemic in April, as he walked 100 laps around his garden in England for the National Health Service to coincide with his 100th birthday. Instead of the £ 1,000 ($ 1,370) ambition, he raised about £ 33 million ($ 45 million).
Moore, who rose to the rank of captain during the war in India and Burma, was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in July for his fundraising efforts.
Best wishes came from far and wide, including from UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who tweeted that Moore had “inspired the entire nation, and I know we all wish you a full recovery.”