A New Jersey man is reeling from the loss of his wife, brother and two other family members – all of whom, according to a report, have died from COVID-19 while living with him.
Ed Kemble Jr., 61, of Burlington County wondered how his loved ones contracted the dreaded disease and hopes his tragic story prompts others to follow all safety guidelines during the pandemic, NJ.com reports.
‘It could have come from many different directions. It’s invisible. You can’t see it, so you can’t know where it came from, ”Kemble Jr., a volunteer firefighter and truck driver, told the news outlet.
“People need to be made aware (the virus) is there. People (should) keep their distance from each other and follow the rules everyone says, ”added Kemble.
At first, Barbara, Kemble’s wife, was taken to a hospital in November when she was suffering from dehydration from kidney problems, the report said.
She was tested for the coronavirus and the disease was diagnosed.
In the months that followed, Kemble visited his ailing wife of almost 40 years – he delivered Jersey Mike’s subs and iced tea, but without entering her room.
On January 16, Barbara died of a stroke.
“Our whole life was reflected around the fire station,” said the grieving widower of his wife, who was president of the Washington Fire Company Ladies Auxiliary in Delanco.
“A lot of times we would hang out in the park in the city, play and stuff,” he told NJ.com. “(The coronavirus) contributed to her (health) problems. Her cause of death was a stroke. “
In December, Kemble’s mother-in-law, Ruth Sharp Allen, was hospitalized after developing pneumonia and a cough. She too tested positive for COVID-19 and died on December 2 at the age of 89.
Kemble’s younger brother, John Daniel Kemble, who lost both legs due to diabetes, was then taken to the hospital because he needed emergency dialysis, NJ.com reported.
The brother, a former bus driver who held multiple positions with the Riverside Emergency Squad as an EMT, tested positive for the virus and died of a heart attack on December 7.
And less than a week later, Ruth Allen’s sister Eileen Wolverton – who was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer in the fall – died at Virtua Willingboro Hospital after a positive test for COVID-19.
Wolverton, a member of the Delanco / Washington Fire Company Ladies Auxiliary, had helped care for Kemble’s bedridden brother, NJ.com reported.
Kemble said he will get his second dose of the COVID-19 vaccine on Wednesday, along with the rest of the fire company – but wish the injections were widely available sooner so that his family could have been protected.
“They should have been (available),” he said. “An awful lot of people would have been alive if that were the case.”