Coronavirus: musician from Hong Kong’s Covid-19 bar cluster recounts harrowing experience of battle with disease
- Mark Anthony Balcueva struggled to breathe and had to be put on a cocktail of drugs, with only the thought of his daughter back in the Philippines keeping him alive
- He knew of the crowd risks before city shut down its nightlife, but had to perform to earn his keep, and says management should have been more vigilant
Mark Anthony Balcueva knew there was a chance he might catch Covid-19, but he was still shaken to his core when he received news of his infection, which resulted in a close brush with death and 13 days in hospital.
The 41-year-old Filipino drummer and father of one performed in packed bars in Hong Kong six nights a week to make ends meet, but 48 hours after his last show on March 23, he became seriously ill with stomachache and diarrhoea, and a persistent fever of more than 39 degrees Celsius.
“I cried so hard for the first time, because I didn’t know what was next,” he recalled. Balcueva has heard many grim stories of coronavirus patients, and knew it was up to fate. “I didn’t know if I was [going to be] the one to die or recover.
“If I slept, I didn’t know if I would still be alive tomorrow.”
In hospital, Balcueva’s condition worsened. He lost his sense of taste, had an acute shortness of breath, and had to be given oxygen. His lung scans revealed patterns similar to frosted glass.
“I was opening my mouth wide and gasping for air, but it felt like something was pressing my chest and the air simply wouldn’t go in. Every breath was an effort.”
