A 92-year-old Gozitan woman has become the first COVID-19 coronavirus patient to die in Malta, Health Minister Chris Fearne has confirmed.

The woman, the resident of an elderly home in Gozo, tested positive for COVID-19 yesterday. Fearne said she had underlying health problems.

“This is a sad day and I offer my condolences to this woman’s family,” he said. “Unfortunately, this won’t be the last death. We’ve seen what has happened in other countries and Malta is no different. We are doing out utmost to reduce the number of people infected.”

She becomes the first person to die in Malta since the pandemic reached the island just over a month ago. A total of 299 people have got infected so far, with the latest six confirmed this afternoon.

This is a developing story. More to follow