Husband, wife die weeks apart from coronavirus at North Carolina nursing home

A husband and wife died weeks apart at a North Carolina nursing home, family said. (WSOCTV.com/WSOCTV.com)

Credit: WSOCTV.com

Credit: WSOCTV.com

A husband and wife died weeks apart at a North Carolina nursing home, family said. (WSOCTV.com/WSOCTV.com)

A husband and wife died weeks apart at a North Carolina nursing home, family said.

Husband and wife, Bobby Jean Watkins and Eddie Watkins, are among the 18 people who have died at the Citadel Salisbury nursing home facility.

State data shows it has the highest number of confirmed cases in the state. As of Friday, the facility had 157 confirmed coronavirus cases and 18 deaths.

The couple of 30 years died just weeks apart and family members said no one at the facility told them they had the coronavirus.

“Three weeks apart I had to bury my grandfather and my grandmother,” said Naticha Murray. “She died alone. We couldn’t see her. We couldn’t touch her.”

"It has been 38 days since Citadel Salisbury learned of their first COVID case," Accordius Health, the company that owns The Citadel Salisbury, told WSOC-TV. "Alongside local and state officials in NC, hospital and community partners the Citadel team has persevered; diligently caring for the people who consider them companions when their own family cannot be there. When asked about notification of family members back in April, our response is that residents and or responsible parties whose contact information that we had were notified by a staff member, the nurse practitioner or the physician."

An attorney has already filed a lawsuit against The Citadel Salisbury and its owners. No hearing has been scheduled in that case at this point.

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