Reported cause of his dad’s death is Covid-19 and his whole family has tested positive
A video that was posted on Aug. 18 on his YouTube channel revealed the troubled times that vlogger Bont Bryan Oropel has been going through. He started by explaining that he tried recording earlier but found it hard to open up at that time. “Ngayon siguro, ngayon na ang right time,” started Bont.
He proceeded to talk about his “papa” who had angioplasty two years ago, but who still needed to have two of his clogged heart arteries treated. But the lockdown happened so leaving the house was not as easy. On July 13, Bont’s mom informed him that his father wasn’t feeling well. He brought his dad to the hospital and the X-ray results revealed that he had pneumonia. His parents were surprised, but the doctor reiterated, “Hindi ako nagbibiro, baka may Covid ka.”
From there, it was an adrenaline-filled day for Bont as he brought his dad from one hospital to another, trying to find a room for him. After a few tries, Bont decided to bring his dad home. That night, they got a call from the hospital and they went straight to the hospital to wait for their turn to be admitted into an isolation room as requested by the doctor.
But upon their arrival, the hospital staff claimed there was no room allocation for his dad. They insisted they got a call, so they tried their luck and waited. By then, his dad wasn’t responding to them. He pleaded for the nurses to help his dad and give him oxygen, but the staff explained that they were not allowed to offer first aid or CPR.
“Nakita ko si Papa na nawalan ng hininga,” Bont vividly recounts. He tried to revive his dad via CPR. His girlfriend Baninay was with him, and was frantic and screaming for help. “Nakita ko paano umiba itsura ni Papa. Yun kamay niya, iba na ang kulay,” he says. He was crying when he said he tried his best to revive his dad, and that none of the nurses helped him. “Gusto ko magalit si Papa. Pero gusto ko na rin maging payapa Papa ko,” he tearfully shares as he carried the lifeless body of his father, straightened his body, legs, and arms. “Ako na rin nagpikit ng mga mata niya kasi nakadilat.”
He called his mom and older brother who were left at home to break the sad news, and they followed right after. As if the hospital’s standard operating procedures weren’t clear enough, what was written in his dad’s death certificate left them confused and dazed. “Suspected Covid and unconscious daw nung dinala namin doon. Ang totoo, tinanong nila kung anong apelido ni Papa at nakasagot pa sya.”
To add insult to injury, they got a call two days later from the hospital, following up when their dad would be checked in as the room was still on hold for him. “Wala silang maayos na communication. Walang maayos na pamamalakad. Sobrang lungkot namin,” laments Bont. These issues have yet to be cleared but the family decided to take it one step at a time since they are still grieving.
And since their dad was suspected to be Covid-positive, Bont’s mom, older brother, and girlfriend took the swab test and it came out positive. He wasn’t feeling well at that time, so he didn’t take the swab test. “Hindi ko alam anong mararamdaman. Kakamatay lang ni papa, may pinabagong pagsubok na naman kaming pinagdadanan,” he says. A few days after his dad’s death, the city health office called the house to extract the infected ones. He was left alone in the house, and it was traumatic to be going through one ordeal after another.
With everyone positive for Covid-19, he also decided to take the test. Five days later, he was also confirmed positive. “Kaya pala nilagnat ako, nawalan ako ng pangamoy, nawalan rin ako ng panlasa,” he recounts.
It’s been a few weeks since then, and he reports that he still has a cold but he’s gaining back his sense of smell and taste. He also reveals that, at one point, he had a hard time breathing as he showed a clip of him breathing from an oxygen tank.
With everything that his family has been through, he credits his strength to hang on by trusting God. “Health is wealth. Ang importante ay ang kalusugan natin, at siyempre, ang resistensya natin.”