There are 4,831 confirmed cases of the coronavirus in Israel as of Tuesday morning, of which 83 are in serious condition, the Health Ministry announced.

Israel recorded its 18th death when a 90-year-old woman who was hospitalized at Kaplan Medical Center in Rechovot passed away on Tuesday. Overnight Monday, two middle-aged women passed away, Israel’s 16th and 17th fatalities.

Tamar Peretz-Levi, a 49-year-old resident of Lod and mother of 4-year-old twins passed away in Yitzchak Shamir Medical Center and Pazit Babian, a 50-year-old resident of Rishon L’Tzion, passed away in Sheba Hospital. Both women had serious preexisting medical conditions.

The mayor of Lod, Yair Revivo, shared the tragic story behind the 18th victim, Tamar Levi-Peretz.

“Tamar, 49, left behind 4-year old twins,” Revivo said. “Shimon, the father, passed away immediately after the birth of the twins from a heart attack. Tamar was a heroic woman, an engineer at Alta in the aerospace industry. She struggled for many years to have children and finally had the twins.”

“She was hospitalized only a few days ago and her condition deteriorated. We’re at the family’s side in this tragic occurrence, a complicated situation in which most of the family members are in quarantine.”

A 58-year old man who was reported to have passed away on Monday at Yitzhak Shamir Medical Center due to the coronavirus was subsequently found to be negative for the virus and thus the number of fatalities in Israel stands at 18.

A tragic incident occurred on Tuesday morning at Poryia Hospital in Tiveria, when a 34-year-old coronavirus patient was found lying outside the hospital in critical condition, apparently due to jumping out of the window of his hospital room. He was rushed to the hospital’s trauma department where he underwent surgery.

“Apparently he tried to end his life,” the Poriya hospital administrator said. An initial investigation shows that the patient met several times with the social worker of the hospital ward but there were no prior signs that he was suicidal. The man was in light condition and was almost ready to be released. The incident is under investigation.

The first coronavirus patient in Israel who was seriously ill and required a ventilator, an East Jerusalem resident who contracted the disease after serving as the bus driver for a group of Greek tourists, has fully recovered and was released from Proyia Hospital on Monday. The hospital stated that he was the first patient in Israel to be treated with Remdesivir, an experimental antiviral medication developed by Gilead Sciences.

נהג אוטובוס התיירים שהיה במצב קשה – החלים מקורונהhttps://t.co/tjpmhJME4J<<
צילום: המרכז הרפואי פדה פוריה pic.twitter.com/hLdDaLZH7x

— עכשיו 14 (@Now14Israel) March 30, 2020

“I’m happy to announce that today the first complex and seriously ill coronavirus patient in Israel is returning home,” Dr. Moshe Matan of Poriya said. “He’s feeling well and leaving with a smile. In light of the situation he was in only two weeks ago, this is a huge achievement in our view.”

“I remember the day Dr. Matan woke me up,” Johnny, a father of three small children, said. “I was hooked up to all the machines and tubes. I heard him ask me if I know where I am. I couldn’t answer him. At that point I thought they had sedated me for a few hours. I had no idea that an entire week had passed…The medical staff was excellent, they didn’t leave me for a minute. I’m standing on my feet only due to the medical staff who saved my life. I want to thank all the staff members who took care of me and gave my life back to me.”

The number of coronavirus cases in the Palestinian Authority rose to 117 as of Tuesday morning.

A total of 27 ventilators and 8 million masks that the Mossad acquired have arrived in Israel, the Health Ministry announced on Tuesday morning.

27 מכונות הנשמה וכן 8 מיליון מסכות – הגיעו לישראל במסגרת העבודה המשותפת של חמל הרכש האחוד של משרד הבריאות, משרד רה"מ, המוסד משרד הביטחון וצה"ל pic.twitter.com/GwS99GV9OV

— אלי שלזינגר Eli Shlezinger (@EliShlezinger) March 31, 2020

Two prison guards have been diagnosed with the coronavirus, one at Nitzan Prison and the other at Ofer Prison, Israel Prisons Service stated. A Kan News report said that neither guard was in direct contact with prisoners in recent days.

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)