4-year-old child is youngest to die of COVID-19 in Riverside County

A 4-year-old child became the youngest person to die of COVID-19 in Riverside County, according to a statement Friday by public health officials.

The child, who is from western Riverside County, was briefly hospitalized and died during the first week of August, but health officials waited until this week to report the cause of death because they were waiting for confirmation from the coroner’s office, authorities said.

The child’s name, gender and city of residence were not released by Riverside County health officials.

“Our thoughts and sympathies go out to the family, friends and others who are impacted by the death of this child,” Dr. Geoffrey Leung, public health officer for Riverside County, said in a statement. “This tragedy reminds us that this virus does not discriminate between the young and old. The death of this child strengthens our commitment to halt this pandemic before the loss of another young life.”

There have been 4,727 deaths related to the coronavirus in Riverside County since the start of the pandemic, officials said.

Most deaths have been of patients older than 30, but a handful of teens and young adults have also died of the illness caused by the virus, officials said. Some had underlying health issues.

The 4-year-old had no underlying health issues, officials said.