Manila, March 29, 2020: A Filipina Benedictine nun has succumbed to coronavirus in Spain, her congregation reported on March 28.
Sr. Maria Gratia Balagot, who was the superior of their community in India, was only visiting Spain to renew her visa when she was infected with Covid-19.
“And while there, (she) contracted the virus,” the US-based Missionary Benedictine Sisters – Norfolk Priory said in a Facebook post.
“Please pray for her and for her community in India and for the whole congregation during this difficult time,” the post reads.
Sr. Balagot, who is originally from Aringay, La Union, died at the age of 71. She has been a missionary in India since 2016.
The congregation also said that their sisters in Korea are on the frontlines in their hospitals and clinics as well as those in the Philippines, Tanzania, Uganda, Kenya, Namibia, Brazil and India.
Spain ranks second to Italy for the number of Covid-19 patient deaths worldwide and is fourth for the number of cases.
As of March 29, the death toll in Spain has jumped to 5,982, while the number of confirmed cases also went up to around 73,235.