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An elderly man died at his home in Invercargill in what is believed to be a coronavirus-related death.
Emergency services were called to a house in the Kingswell suburb of Invercargill last night.
Two ambulances, several police cars and at least one fire truck were spotted on the property around 8:30 p.m., neighbors say.
Director-General for Health, Dr. Ashley Bloomfield, said the Health Ministry was still looking for more information before confirming the cause of death.
It would be the first Covid-19-related death in the community, he said.
A San Juan spokesman said they could not comment on the incident and referred media inquiries to the Police and the Ministry of Health.
A neighbor, who asked not to be identified, told the Herald that he was watching television when he first noticed that something was happening outside on the street.
He saw ambulance vehicles and a fire brigade before at least three police cars arrived at the scene soon after, he said.
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The resident said he had cared about his neighbors at the home, an elderly couple who had lived there for at least 20 years, he said.
“I noticed vehicles in the driveway and looked up: it was her daughter and her granddaughter.
“They had to go back and the police were talking to them.”
He was surprised that family members did not enter the house and it seemed that police officers were keeping them away from the property, he said.
‘They took a stretcher inside … then a hearse arrived’
“The daughter had her head down. They did not move from that place.
“The police did not let them up any further and that was at approximately 10 o’clock.”
The man said he couldn’t sleep after seeing what was happening and stayed awake until the wee hours of the morning.
“Just before midnight, they took a stretcher inside the house and took someone out, and then a hearse came in. It was a huge commotion.”
Police said they were called to the home around 8:45 p.m. after a report of a sudden death.
• Covid19.govt.nz – The official government Covid-19 advisory website
