Husband Urges People to Get Vaccine After Wife Dies of COVID Days After Giving Birth

The husband of an unvaccinated woman who died of COVID-19 after giving birth to their daughter has urged people to get vaccinated to avoid the same fate.

Samantha Willis, 35, died in Altnagelvin Hospital in Derry, Northern Ireland, on Friday after battling the virus for 16 days.

In a tribute posted on Facebook, her husband Josh Willis said his wife had died without properly meeting their newborn daughter, named Eviegrace.

"Whilst in hospital she also had to deliver our newest addition to the family who she has never met properly or held in her arms," he wrote. "I will make sure that Eviegrace will know all about the mother she will never meet."

Josh Willis also posted a message on Twitter, urging people to get vaccinated.

"I spent hours in ICU on Thursday and Friday with my wife who passed away," he wrote in the post on his Signed Memorabilia business account.

"It's real, the numbers are real. Get your vaccine so you or your family don't have to go through what I have had to. As I write this I am laying beside her, she is 35, unvaccinated and in a coffin. Let that sink in!"

He wrote this in response to a tweet from a BBC broadcaster that noted that Northern Ireland has the highest infection and death rate in the U.K. and the lowest vaccination rate.

"Think about that if you are wondering whether to get a Covid vaccine today," Stephen Nolan wrote in the tweet. "Use your brain."

In his Facebook tribute, Josh Willis wrote that his wife was "comfortable when she slipped away" with him, her mother and their two older children by her side.

"I never thought I would be writing something like this for years to come, if ever," he wrote.

"I have lost the love of my life Samantha to Covid-19. Samantha had put up a strong fight for the last 16 days but in the end just wasn't enough."

He added: "All I want to do now is make Samantha proud. I'm sure she's already looking down and proud of how we are coping. We are also proud of her, she was a wonderful, loving and caring person and she has been our super hero the last few weeks. She is now our guardian angel and she will remain in our hearts and thoughts for ever more. We love you loads and miss you. We wish we could only have helped you get home to live the rest of your life with us."

Josh Willis also thanked the hospital staff who cared for his wife. "You are all truly wonderful people and I will never forget what you have done for Samantha and our family," he wrote. He has been contacted for further comment.

Authorities in Northern Ireland have urged people to get vaccinated amid a surge in coronavirus infections and deaths this summer.

"The Delta variant is taking its toll on Northern Ireland and it is vital that as many of our citizens as possible are vaccinated," Robin Swann, the country's health minister, said on Friday.