Costello family denounce harmful anti-vax rumours after prominent Cherbourg elder’s death

The family of a prominent Cherbourg elder who tragically died last month have condemned anti-vaxxers for using his death to push their agenda, as the community battles concerns over dire vaccination levels.

The family of Cherbourg elder Uncle Bevan Costello have pushed back against anti-vaxxers who are using his death to push their agenda, while the community faces potential crisis due to low vaccination rates.

Uncle Bevan’s son and Cherbourg councillor Leighton Costello said it was important for the community to know his father passed away from a heart attack on September 15 after weeks of poor health.

Speculation on social media suggested Uncle Bevan’s death was related to the fact he had his second Covid jab in the week before his death, but his grieving son said there was absolutely no correlation between the two events.

“My father did not pass away from the Covid-19 vaccination. He had a history of chronic illness and was ill for a few weeks leading up to his death, and sadly passed away from natural causes, which was a heart attack,” Mr Costello said.

“He was a chronically-ill man. He had health issues leading up to his death and I’m satisfied with the coroner’s reports and his medical certificate that he died of natural causes.”

Mr Costello said his father would be “turning in his grave” if he knew his death was being used to push the anti-vax agenda, especially with low vaccination rates putting the community at risk of lockdown - or worse - when Queensland borders open.

He said he and his family were still grieving, but chose to make a statement out of necessity to silence the trolls on social media.

Mr Costello said the unfortunate timing of his father’s passing has had a negative impact on the community’s perception of the vaccine.

“Dad was an advocate for the community and wanted everyone to get vaccinated. There are 849 that are eligible to get the vaccine, and only 206 people have the vaccine. That’s less than a quarter,” Mr Costello said.

“He was a passionate elder in this community and wanted everyone to be safe. He set up a platform for me to keep going and keep advocating to keep our community safe.

“So I encourage anyone out there who hasn’t got the vaccine to go and get it done.”

Cherbourg remains the least vaccinated local government area in Queensland with 32 per cent of residents having had at least one dose of a Covid vaccine and 24.9 per cent fully vaccinated.