In a rare case of juvenile death during Coronavirus pandemic, an infant from United States, who had tested positive for COVID-19 has died, the first known death of a child younger than a year old infected with the virus in the country.

Newborns, babies and young children have so far seemed to be mostly unaffected by coronavirus and any symptoms in children have only been mild.

Governor of llinois J B Pritzker told reporters that the  baby from Chicago was among 13 new deaths in the state among the fatalities linked to the new coronavirus over the previous 24 hours.

The state’s Department of Public Health (IDPH) reported on Saturday, the death of the infant in Chicago who tested positive for the coronavirus disease (COVID-19).

“There has never before been a death associated with COVID-19 in an infant. A full investigation is underway to determine the cause of death,” IDPH Director Ngozi Ezike said.

“We must do everything we can to prevent the spread of this deadly virus. If not to protect ourselves, but to protect those around us, ”  he added.

About the deaths which have occurred so far,  Governor Pritzker said, “We should grieve. We should grieve with our family of state employees. With the many people who we’ve already lost to this virus, young and old. We should grieve for the loss of a sense of normalcy that we left behind just a few weeks ago. It’s okay, today, to grieve.”

People above 60 years of age are at higher risk of severe illness, and more than 85 per cent of deaths in Illinois are among individuals  above 60 years of age . However, people of all ages are suffering severe illness. IDPH reported 465 new cases of COVID-19 in Illinois, including 13 new deaths.

Currently, IDPH is reporting a total of 3,491 cases, including 47 deaths, in 43 counties in Illinois. The age of cases ranges from younger than one to 99 years.

United States has become the country with most number of cases surpassing China with 124,464 cases, although its death toll of more than 2,000 is still below that of other countries including Italy, Spain and China.

The global death toll in the coronavirus pandemic crossed 30,000 on Sunday, as total cases crossed 6,60,000. With 92,472 cases Italy’s death toll crossed 10,000 becoming  the worst-hit country followed by Spain which has reported 5,986 deaths.

More than 450 deaths occurred over the past  24-hours in the United States.

(With agency inputs)