A woman in Spain becomes the first oldest person in the world to recover from the novel coronavirus. Maria Branyas, who is 113 years old came to Spain with her family during World War I and has witnessed many historic catastrophes like the Spanish flu pandemic in 1918-1919 and also the Spanish civil war in 1936-39.
Maria became infected with COVID-29 around April while she was receiving medical assistance for her respiratory illness.
She fought the virus at the Santa Maria del Tura care home, in Olot where she has been living for the past twenty years. According to reports, she is believed to be the oldest living person in Spain.
She was in isolation in her room the entire time, with only one staff person in protective gear checking on her. A spokesperson from the acre centre confirmed that she survived the disease and tested negative when she took the test a week ago.
Maria’s daughter Rosa Moret also opened up about her mother. She mentioned how Maria was in shape now, reflecting and willing to talk.
Many employees at the day care asked Maria the secret to her long life, and her reply was simply that she is blessed with good health. Originally from the US, Maria was born in San Francisco and later moved to Spain.
While COVID-19 has been severely deadly toward the elderly, Maria’s recovery comes as a ray of hope for many.
(with inputs from NDTV)
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