Two pupils at same school who caught Covid-19 die within a week of each other

Covid has been confirmed as the cause of death in one of the boys

Two pupils from a school in Staffordshire who died within a week of each other during October half-term both had contracted Covid-19. Mohammed Habib, a year 10 student at St John Fisher Catholic College in Newcastle-under-Lyme, and fellow student Harry Towers died within six days of each other having both caught the virus. According to the Stoke Sentinel, a medical examination found that Mohammed's cause of death was a bleed on the brain following a stroke caused by Covid-19. Mohammed passed away on October 24, and was buried two days later at Fenton Muslim Cemetery following a service at Markaz At-Tawheed, in Hanley. A North Staffordshire Coroner's Court spokesman said: "The coroner was provided with a cause of death which he was satisfied was natural and further investigations were not required. The cause of death was: 1a Cerebral oedema; 1b Stroke; 2: Covid-19." Investigations are still underway into the cause of death of year 11 pupil Towers, who passed away on October 30. https://twitter.com/Cleavon_MD/status/1469156845604515840 On Harry's case, the coroner's spokesman said: "A post-mortem examination has been undertaken and the investigation is still ongoing as a cause of death has not yet been provided. "At this stage the coroner is expecting that the cause of death may be natural and so an inquest has not been opened." Neither of the boys had any known underlying health conditions. Pupils at the school had been due to have their Covid jabs at the school just weeks before the boys were struck down with the virus. But only flu jabs were given, with the Covid vaccinations being rescheduled to mid-November. It is understood that neither boy had been vaccinated. Both the school's acting headteacher Garrett Murray and Staffordshire's director of public health Richard Harling have declined to comment on the coroner's findings. Related links:

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