First Coronavirus Death In State Is NYC Woman, Officials Say

NEW YORK CITY — An elderly woman has become the first New Yorker to die from novel coronavirus, officials said Saturday.

The 82-year-old woman with emphysema died Friday night at Wyckoff Heights Medical Center in Brooklyn, 10 days after she was first hospitalized, elected officials said.

"They did all they could do to support her and help her," Mayor Bill de Blasio said of the hospital staff. "Our hearts are with her family."

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There were 183 cases in New York City as of 1 p.m. Saturday and, as of 6 p.m. Friday, there were 30 people hospitalized with 19 in intensive care, the mayor said.

About 80 percent of those hospitalized were more than 50 years old or had previous medical conditions, de Blasio said.

An FDNY firehouse went under quarantine after a firefighter tested positive for COVID-19 Friday evening, de Blasio said.

The firefighter worked Sunday through Tuesday — never working with patients or on medical runs — then stopped working when he developed symptoms, de Blasio said.

More than 30 members of the Brooklyn firehouse were quarantined and the station closed for a cleaning which will be completed about 6 p.m., the mayor said.

"We’ve known from the outset that these people are the most at risk in this pandemic," de Blasio said in a statement. "Today’s news is a sad confirmation of that reality."

Cuomo also said the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in New York state has risen to 524, reporters said on Twitter.

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