A railway worker from the United Kingdom has passed away of coronavirus after she was allegedly spat on by an infected traveler.

Fox News reported that the worker’s union said that the incident occurred on March 22, when 47 year-old Belly Mujinga was working at the Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) at Victoria station in London. Mujinga and a colleague of hers were accosted by a male traveler who spat and coughed at them as he told them that he had tested positive for COVID-19, according to a statement from her union, Transport Salaried Staffs Association (TSSA).

Police were immediately called after the women reported the incident to the ticketing office.

“Belly and her colleague begged to be let to work from inside the building with a protective barrier between them and the public for the rest of that day,” the statement read. “They were concerned for their safety. Management said they needed people working outside and sent them back out onto the concourse for the rest of their shift.”

“The man said he had the virus and spat on them. They reported it to their supervisor. Belly came home and told me everything,” Mujinga’s husband Lusamba Gode Katalay told ITV.

The union said that both women tested positive for coronavirus within the next few days, with Mujinga being hit particularly hard because she had underlying respiratory issues. On April 2, she was rushed to Barnet Hospital, where she was put on a ventilator. Mujinga tragically passed away three days later on April 5, and her story has only just been broken by the media now.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fLzGCJBwIck

Katalay said that the last time he saw his wife was when she was being taken to the hospital.

“That was the last time I saw her. We just said, ‘Be good,’ and that God is in charge,” he said. “We did a WhatsApp video in the hospital, but then I didn’t hear from her again. I thought she might be asleep, but the doctor phoned me to tell me she had died.”

Mujinga has been remembered as a “much-loved mother, wife, sister, friend and colleague,” with her husband saying that she was a “good person, a good mother and a good wife.”

“She gave her friendship to many people. She was a caring person and would take care of everybody,” he added.

Manuel Cortes, the general secretary for TSSA, said the union was “shocked and devastated” to hear of Mujinga’s tragic death.

“She is one of far too many front-line workers who have lost their lives to coronavirus,” he said, going on to blame the GTR for not treating the assault “seriously enough.”

“As a vulnerable person in the ‘at risk’ category and her condition known to her employer, there are questions about why GTR didn’t stand her down from front line duties early on in this pandemic. The assault she suffered at work was scary and we do not think the company treated it seriously enough,” he said. “Our rail industry needs to have a very serious look at what tasks are deemed ‘essential’ and must put protections in place for all our members and our passengers.”

This piece originally appeared in UpliftingToday.com and is used by permission.

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