Tributes are being paid to a Keswick woman who died in hospital after contracting coronavirus.
Grandmother Fiona Clark, aged 76, had undergone a COVID-19 test at the Cumberland Infirmary in Carlisle two days before she was due to be admitted for a routine operation.
The test proved positive and Fiona, who lived in Windebrowe Avenue, was rushed back into the hospital where she succumbed to the deadly virus.
“I couldn’t believe she could have gone downhill so rapidly. It was on her chest and she was struggling for her breath,” said her son Andy Clark, aged 52, of Keswick.
“She walked out of that hospital to the car park on her own after the test — and 48 hours later she collapsed at home.”
Fiona, who was born and bred in Keswick, was readmitted to the Cumberland Infirmary, but three days later she died there.
Her funeral took place on Monday at Carlisle Crematorium where mourners will be limited to 24 because of coronavirus restrictions.
“She was a big part of the community. We have had cards and messages from people, some she worked with more than 30 years ago.
“Her bubbly personality shone through as she always had time to stop and chat to locals and visitors alike,” said her other son Stephen, who is a twin with Andy.
The mother-of-two, who was born in Brigham Row, Keswick, was known to many people from having been supervisor at the Woolworths store in the town for more than 20 years from 1976.
She then worked for nearly a decade at The Leather Shop in Station Street, having previously worked at the Royal Oak and Skiddaw Hotel.
“She was the boss at Woolies but a friend as well to staff. All the lasses from there have sent cards, and she left there in 1996. They worked hard but were very close,” said Andy.
Besides her sons, Fiona, who attended St John’s and Lairthwaite schools, also had three granddaughters Layla, aged 25, Dee, aged 23, and 21-year-old Emma.
She is also survived by brother Brian, of Cockermouth, and sister Beryl, of Hertfordshire, along with Andy’s wife Nina and Steve’s partner Sandra.
Her sons thanked staff at the Cumberland Infirmary who cared for their mother, along with colleagues at the Mary Hewetson Hospital in Keswick where she had spent six months in 2016.
