Woman with COVID-19 dies after giving birth to sixth child

A pregnant 30-year-old woman who has been battling COVID-19 succumbed to the disease after giving birth to her sixth child, leaving behind six young children including the youngest, whom she did not have a chance of holding.

Ashley Gornick-Gomez of Northridge California was already 37 weeks pregnant with her sixth child when she contracted COVID-19. In late December, she started experiencing difficulty breathing and was immediately rushed to the Kaiser Permanente Hospital in Woodland Hills.

An account made by her husband on KTLA 5 revealed that they had to force Ashley to go to the hospital because she did not want to go near one. Being a nurse herself, she thought that she would rather save the extra bed for somebody who would really need the care.

The doctors performed an emergency cesarean section and delivered Corey, a healthy baby boy, on Dec. 20. However, since Ashley was COVID-19 positive, the mother and son were immediately separated. Her husband said that what hurt the most for him was that his wife did not get the chance to hold their baby before passing away.

After Ashley gave birth, her condition just got worse. She had fever, infections, and pneumonia. Her mother, Veronica Gornick, narrated that her fever spiked to 109 degrees Fahrenheit on Friday night and they got to be with her the whole of Saturday. However, she eventually succumbed.

The family also revealed that even though Ashley was working with coronavirus patients, she has been very meticulous when it comes to protecting herself. She would always have personal protective equipment, which was why her mom was shocked when she got COVID-19.

Ashley's mom said that her children, all boys, were her world. "She loved her boys so so much," Veronica said.

Her eldest son, 11-year-old Ryan, recounted how their mother would always find time to help them with either school or to simply just hang out with them. Ryan called his mom a hero and a savior to those whom his mom took care of.

"She always found a way in her day to make ours better," Ryan added.

As of writing, the Worldometer noted 2,577,458 coronavirus cases in California, with 28,511 deaths and with 1,088,423 who have already recovered.

Mom battling with COVID-19