Belly Mujinga British train station worker dies of coronavirus 2 weeks after sick traveler spat at her. Investigation continues.
A British train station worker has died of coronavirus two weeks after a sick traveler spat at her, her union revealed Tuesday.
Belly Mujinga, 47, was set upon while working in London’s Victoria Station on March 22 by a man who coughed over her and a colleague, the UK transport union TSSA said in a statement.
‘The man said he had the virus and spat on them,’ her husband, Lusamba Gode Katalay, told ITV.
It remained unclear why the man coughed and spat on the two workers.
Within days, both women fell ill with COVID-19 — and Mujinga died in Barnet Hospital on April 5, exactly two weeks after the attack, TSSA said.
Mujinga — the mother of an 11-year-old girl — had underlying respiratory problems, her husband said. She fell ill within a week of being spat at, and was taken to the London hospital on April 2, he told ITV.
‘That was the last time I saw her. We just said, ‘Be good,’ and that God is in charge,’ the husband said.
‘We did a WhatsApp video in hospital, but then I didn’t hear from her again. I thought she might be asleep, but the doctor phoned me to tell me she had died,’ the husband reiterated.
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Jason Hargrove 50, a bus driver in Detroit posted this video on March 21st. 4 days later he complained of feeling ill. 7 days later he was dead from coronavirus. pic.twitter.com/3F181KtuKr
— **🐏TheWool_LFC🐏** (@LfcThewool) April 4, 2020
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Just eight other people were allowed to join him and his daughter at his wife’s funeral because of the pandemic, Katalay said.
‘She was a good person, a good mother, and a good wife,’ Katalay said of his wife, who was originally from the Democratic Republic of Congo and moved to the UK in 2000. ‘She gave her friendship to many people. She was a caring person and would take care of everybody.’
TSSA’s general secretary, Manuel Cortes, said the union was ‘shocked and devastated’ at the death.
‘She is one of far too many front-line workers who have lost their lives to coronavirus,’ Cortes said.
Cortes has called for the families of all such workers who have died from COVID-19 to receive government compensation, which has so far only been promised to healthcare worker victims.
British Transport Police confirmed to ITV that it was investigating the attack and called for witnesses. It is not believed the sick perpetrator has been identified or brought to account.
Not immediately clear is why the UK transit worker who had underlying respiratory issues was mandated to continue working on the front lines.
Rest in Peace, Belly Mujinga. The 47 year old railway station worker has died from Covid-19 after being spat at while on duty. Southern Railway have serious questions to answer about why Belly, who had underlying respiratory problems, was still on the frontline. pic.twitter.com/zXFA7pyznF
— Cllr Jack Davies (@jackdaviesld) May 12, 2020
