Coronavirus: Obituary blames anti-maskers, Trump for husband’s COVID-19 death

An “inconsolable” wife in the US didn’t hold back in her husband’s obituary, blaming “selfish” anti-maskers for his virus-related death.

An obituary for a Texas man who died after contracting coronavirus has blamed anti-maskers and US President Donald Trump for this death.

David W. Nagy, 79, died last month and had “suffered greatly from the ravages of the COVID-19 virus and the separation from his much loved family”, an obituary posted by his “inconsolable” wife Stacey Nagy in local newspaper the Jefferson Jimplecute last week.

The obituary pulled no punches – it labelled Mr Nagy’s death as “needless” and said his family “blame his death and the deaths of all the other innocent people on Trump, (Texas governor Greg) Abbott and all the politicians who did not take this pandemic seriously”.

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David W. Nagy's obituary has since gone viral.

It also took aim at “ignorant, self centred and selfish people” who refuse to wear masks or follow social distancing.

“Dave did everything he was supposed to do, but you did not. Shame on all of you, and may Karma find you all!” the obituary ended.

The obituary went viral after it was posted to Twitter yesterday, where it was labelled necessary reading for anyone who wasn’t following health advice:

These 3 paragraphs should be the last 3 of every obit for someone dying from COVID-19.

— Arthur Kelly (@maxson1218) August 3, 2020

Heartbreaking. The rest of the world is laughing at us. Or should i say laughing more

— Matt Fezatte (@MattFezatte) August 3, 2020

This is so sad. The pain in this obituary is jump of the page. They are right about who is to blame. What a horrible loss.

— Tina bina (@ScharleyTina) August 3, 2020

These are the tragedies of selfishness and willful ignorance. So sorry for those who loved and lost him.

— Vickie (@vickiejomorris) August 3, 2020

Mrs Nagy told Buzzfeed News that because her husband had been at high risk of suffering adversely if he got coronavirus they had taken every precaution they could.

Mr Nagy had early signs of dementia, diabetes and heart problems, with the family placing him in a nursing home after he suffered a serious fall in March, thinking it was where he would be safest.

In early July, Mr Nagy was hospitalised and tested positive for coronavirus and, despite best efforts to save his life, he died from COVID-19 complications on July 22.

“I was p*ssed,” Mrs Nagy told Buzzfeed. “I was super p*ssed because it didn’t have to happen and every time I think about it I get angry and cry. People running around not wearing masks when they should, people making masks a political thing when it isn’t. It’s life and death. It’s not political. It’s about people.”

Mrs Nagy said she didn’t care if people liked the obituary but wanted to have it known who she blamed for her husband’s death.

“I did it because I was p*ssed off and I wanted people to know the ones that refuse to wear a mask, that they are the killers and they are to blame, not just for Dave’s stuff but for all these people,” she said.

“He’s not the only husband to die. There’s been thousands of other husbands and wives and fathers and mothers and brothers that have died.”

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A refrigerated trailer sits outside of HCA Houston Healthcare Northwest in July, where it will be used as a temporary morgue. Picture: Mark Felix/AFP.

Texas was one of the first states to reopen businesses and social distancing measures have proved divisive.

It is now one of the US states hit hardest by coronavirus, with the state forced to bring in freezer trucks to use as temporary morgues last month.

There have now been more than 430,000 confirmed cases and 6800 deaths, prompting the state government to impose new restrictions in late June closing bars and limiting the number of customers inside restaurants.

But despite the climbing death toll, Texas Governor Abbott has been urged on several occasions to change his stance by people opposed to his safety measures.

In April, when the state was on lockdown, protesters gathered in several Texan cities to demand the jump-starting of the economy.

A Texas hairdresser was sentenced to seven days in jail and a given hefty fine in May for continuing to operate in defiance of the lockdown measures, in a case that caught national media attention.

Mr Abbott then overturned the prison sentence retroactively and salons were permitted to open in the weeks that followed.

– With AFP