A Florida Keys man dies from COVID-19, first Monroe County death, health officials say
A 55-year-old Florida Keys man died Thursday of COVID-19-related causes, according to the Florida Department of Health in Monroe County.
This was the first COVID-19-related death reported in the Keys.
Friends and family identified the man as Keith White, of Key West, on Facebook. White’s page says he was originally from West Memphis, Arkansas.
White, who died at Lower Keys Medical Center in Key West, had “an underlying health condition,” said Alison Kerr, a spokeswoman for DOH in Monroe County. “This confirmation will be reflected on the State Health Office’s database.”
The state’s COVID-19 dashboard at 9:30 p.m. Thursday had zero deaths listed for Monroe. It listed seven hospitalizations.
“The virus just hit close to home,” Jeffrey Rowe posted on White’s Facebook page. “Please be safe everyone. R.I.P. Mistah Keith.”
On Thursday evening, the state said Monroe had 38 confirmed positive cases, 33 residents and five non residents. Of the 33, 19 were in Key West, five in Key Largo, four in Tavernier and one each in Islamorada, Marathon, Key Colony Beach and Summerland Key. The other patient was listed as being in a “missing city” on the state’s report.
Five patients were listed as non-residents.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
This story was originally published April 2, 2020 at 10:01 PM with the headline "A Florida Keys man dies from COVID-19, first Monroe County death, health officials say."
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