Young Mother Dies Just One Day After Being Diagnosed With The Flu

Alani Murrieta, 20, checked into a Phoenix hospital on November 27. On November 28, she was dead.

mother dies flu
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Health

A young mother with no preexisting conditions died one day after being diagnosed with the flu, according to reports.

Alani Murrieta, 20, checked into a Phoenix hospital last week on November 27. On November 28, she was dead.

Alani’s aunt, Stephanie Gonzalez, told FOX 10 that her niece left work early that Sunday due to not feeling well. She claims her relative rarely got sick other than the occasional cold.

That following Monday, Alani’s sister took the sick woman to urgent care, along with Alani’s children who had also fallen ill. They were all diagnosed with the flu and sent home with medication to combat the illness. The next morning, Alani’s condition worsened to the point where she could barely breath, so her mother her back to the hospital.

“Her oxygen levels were low,” Alani’s aunt told reporters about her niece’s condition. “They took an X-ray around 9 that morning, and they told her she had pneumonia, and it kind of just went downhill after that.”

Within hours of her upgraded health status, Alani would be dead.

mother dies flu
A young mother died one day after being diagnosed with the flu. sturti / iStock

“Murrieta was put on a ventilator and then her heart stopped,” the New York Daily News wrote.

“Doctors tried to resuscitate her, but could not do so. Gonzales says doctors told the family Murrieta had [the] flu [and] that turned into pneumonia. She reportedly had no preexisting conditions.”

Murrieta leaves behind two young children, including a six-month-old son. Her family is understandably heartbroken by the news of the young mother’s sudden passing.

“Never in a million years would we have thought that we would have lost her that day like this,” Ms. Gonzales said to reporters.

A GoFundMe page created to raise funds for Alani’s funeral has gathered nearly $13,000 of its $15,000 goal, and notes the family as being completely “devastated” at the young mother’s passing.

“Alani passed away suddenly yesterday afternoon from the flu that turned into pneumonia,” it reads.

“Our family is devastated that she is gone. Alani was a beautiful loving mother, just 20 years old with two young boys. We are trying to keep strong and make the necessary arrangements but need help with funds as her passing was completely unexpected.”