Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

A Port Arthur woman has died as a result of the COVID-19 virus, health officials announced Monday afternoon.

“It is with great sadness” that the City of Port Arthur Health Department reported the sixth COVID-19-related death of a resident of Port Arthur.

The individual is an African American female between the age range of 60 and 65.

It is undetermined at this time whether the individual had underlying health conditions, health department officials said.

“We emphasize again that COVID-19 is a very serious disease,” a health department release stated. “While 80 percent of individuals who contract COVID-19 will have mild to moderate symptoms and fully recover, they may spread the disease to people who are at high risk.”

Health officials say the elderly and people with underlying health conditions or weakened immune systems are at a much higher risk for developing serious complications from COVID-19.

The Port Arthur Health Department strongly advises at-risk individuals to minimize contact with others who are ill, practice social distancing and wear mask when in public.