A 7-year-old boy died from the coronavirus in Georgia, making him the youngest victim in the state’s short history of dealing with COVID-19.
The boy had no reported chronic conditions, according to the state’s public health department.
“Every COVID-19 death we report is tragic, but to lose someone so young is especially heartbreaking,” Dr. Lawton Davis, the health director for the Coastal Health District, said in a statement to CNN. “We know that older individuals and those with underlying conditions are at higher risk of complications, but this is a disease everyone should take seriously.”
The boy’s death comes as Georgia surpasses 4,000 coronavirus-related deaths. The state has had nearly 190,000 cases of the coronavirus.
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp was one of the first to initiate reopening efforts in his state.
The Republican encouraged Georgians to wear face masks but refused to mandate face coverings. Kemp sued Atlanta over its mask requirement and attempts to roll back reopening measures issued by Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms.
Kemp has also been a supporter of reopening schools, with several schools already having had their first days in person. This week, a second-grader tested positive for the virus shortly after attending the first day of school in Georgia. After it became known that the student contracted the coronavirus, one classroom was temporarily closed on Tuesday for deep cleaning, and a teacher and 20 other students were asked to quarantine for two weeks.