Boy from isolated Amazon tribe dies after being infected with coronavirus

A Yanomami indigenous boy has died after contracting the coronavirus, authorities in Brazil said Friday, raising fears for the Amazon tribe, which is known for its vulnerability to disease.

The 15-year-old boy, the first Yanomami to be diagnosed with the virus, was hospitalized a week ago at an intensive care unit in Boa Vista, the capital of the northern state of Roraima, officials said.

He died of severe respiratory complications on Thursday night, the Brazilian health ministry said in a statement.

Isolated indigenous peoples in the Amazon rainforest are particularly vulnerable to diseases brought in from the outside world, and a Yanomami rights group said the boy had come in to contact with "many" other indigenous people after he began showing symptoms.

The Hutukara Association blamed "inadequate medical care" for the boy's death, saying he went more than two weeks without a proper diagnosis from the time he first went to the hospital with respiratory symptoms.

It called on the authorities to track them down and help them undergo testing and self-isolation. It also urged the government to crack down on illegal gold miners on indigenous lands, believed to be the source of the contagion.

A major outbreak among indigenous communities would amount to a "genocide," said Katia Brasil, editor at Amazonia Real news agency, which specializes in issues facing Amazonian peoples.

"This disease is very dangerous for us," said Dario Yawarioma, a Yanomami leader. "It's a very sad day for the Yanomami."