31-year-old Massachusetts man dies of coronavirus, family says

BOSTON — A 31-year-old man was the youngest to die of COVID-19 in Massachusetts.

Riley Rumrill’s family says he was healthy, and this virus just stole him away from them.

Rumrill went to Boston Medical Center with a high fever. His family said all within just 5 days, the virus took over. They didn’t even give them a chance to say goodbye to him.

“Riley was the spark of the family. He was one of the most outgoing,” said his brother, Rob Rumrill.

He was known to be a super active guy who made everyone laugh and loved to cook. Riley was one of four brothers. He moved to Boston from Alabama four years ago.

“He would always go to us and say but, but family,” his brother said.

On March 21, Riley started feeling ill, and was having a scratchy throat, a fever of 104 and feeling weak.

“This was a 5 day ordeal,” his brother said. “It was a situation where the doctors called us, ‘Hey, we are concerned about your brother. We are going to make an exception to see your brother.'"

All within five days, Riley’s oxygen levels were low, and doctors told the family his heart was giving out.

“He was sedated, on a ventilator, kidney failure, they were doing dialysis,” said Riley’s father, Bob Rumrill.

Riley’s brother, Rob, recounted the moment the family knew Riley was gone.

Medical staff told him, “‘There is something going on with your brother, (that) we may need to get to the hospital immediately.’ We got in the car, and 10 minutes later, they said, ‘Your brother passed.’”

The family doesn’t know if it was Riley’s asthma that may have played a part, or they don’t know if he may have contracted coronavirus from his job, where he worked in human resources.

Riley Rumrill had so many friends and was known to be the life of the party. The Rumrills have this message for everyone.

“Don’t play. Don’t get a loaf of bread, and stay home. This thing is a silent killer,” his father said.

Riley loved to cook. He always wanted to be a chef. He loved to cook Spanish food.

The family says they will be holding several memorials through Zoom.

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