The family of a Texas woman who recently died after contracting the new strain of COVID-19 is warning the public to take the highly contagious bug seriously. <\/p>\n
Felicia Parker, 40, began having trouble breathing when she got sick over the holidays, KTRK reported. <\/p>\n
Doctors later confirmed the Houston woman had contracted the new, more contagious strain of the virus from the UK, according to the outlet. <\/p>\n
Relative Romeka James told KTRK that Parker, who had been recently diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes, was admitted to a hospital in Houston last Monday, and died on Saturday. <\/p>\n
“This is serious,” said James. “This is not just another person. This is someone’s mother, someone’s sister. We have to be really safe, we have to follow the CDC guidelines. It’s not just another number. It’s somebody.” <\/p>\n
The UK variant, which has been showing up in multiple states, including New York, is not any more deadly that the original virus, but it is highly contagious, according to medical experts. <\/p>\n