Unvaccinated care worker, 55, and daughter, 32, die of Covid within 2 weeks as dad says jab refusal will ‘haunt him’

AN unvaccinated care worker and her daughter died of Covid-19 within two weeks as the dad says their refusal to take the jab will “haunt him”.

Sammie-Jo Forde,32, died in a Belfast hospital last Saturday – just 11 days after her mum Heather Maddern, 55, succumbed to the virus in the same ward on August 31.

Kevin McAllister, Forde’s dad, said their decision not to take the vaccine will “haunt me for the rest of my life”, adding his daughter had left behind four children.

Sammie-Jo and her mum were both unvaccinated and ended up in Ulster Hospital battling the virus.

Just two beds apart, both women ended up sadly passing away and Kevin told how he couldn’t wrap his head around why they didn’t get the Covid jab.

Speaking with BBC’s The Nolan Show, Kevin said: “I’ve had the worst weekend of my life. My daughter passed away on Saturday.

“She had Covid-19 and both [her and her mum] never took the Covid vaccine, I believe.”

Sammi-Jo had four children and Kevin added: “And to make matters worse, it’s her oldest son’s birthday today, he’s 13.”

The heartbroken dad broke down in tears as he pleaded with people to get vaccinated as his ex and his daughter “could’ve been alive today”.

Kevin said: “These people who are not taking the Covid-19 injections are not thinking of the people they’re leaving behind.

“I’ve lost my daughter, my best friend.

“I’ve heard of people losing parents but to have it happen to your own family, I wouldn’t wish it on anyone.

“I’ve gone back to work today to get my mind off it but next Monday I have to bury my first-born and I can just never get out of my mind why she didn’t take it.

“And it’ll haunt me for the rest of my life.”

He said he “never, ever thought he’d be burying [his] daughter” as he begged people to listen to the health experts and get vaccinated.

Sammi-Jo and Heather, who worked together taking care of elderly people in the community, had no underlying health conditions.

VACCINE PLEA

Kevin continued: “I’m devastated.

“Loads of people not just in Northern Ireland but out there not taking [the vaccine] don’t realise what they’re leaving behind, we’ve to pick up the pieces.

“I’ve two sons as well and they’ve lost their sister. It’s just on my mind every night thinking, ‘Why didn’t you take it?’

“I can’t bring [her] back but I just wish people out there would just take it and not have to go what I’m going through.

“I lost a child over something which she could’ve been alive today.

“They worked in the community helping old people and they couldn’t even help themselves.

“I just wish people who won’t take [the vaccine] realise it will kill them. She was a 32-year-old healthy girl and she took heart failure at the end because she just couldn’t cope.”

Kevin recalled the day he was told of his daughter’s passing and said it’s “shattered [his] world”.

‘SHATTERED MY WORLD’

The concerned dad rang the hospital to check in on his daughter on Saturday, but was asked to call back later, which made Kevin feel that something wasn’t right.

Kevin said Sammi-Jo was sending him text messages saying: “I’m okay dad” and they chatted about cooking a fry when she came home.

He said: “But to get that phone call on Saturday, I’ll never forget that. That’ll haunt me for the rest of my life

“I drove straight home and called again and said, ‘I’m her daddy, Kevin McAllister’ and [the nurse] said, ‘I’m sorry, your daughter just passed away five minutes ago’.

“It’s broken me… this has just shattered my world.

“They were very, very close, they worked together, lived together and died together. They were like peas in a pod the two of them.”

Sammi-Jo will be buried on Monday and Kevin said: “I never, ever thought in my life I’d be burying my daughter.

“People say time’s a healer but I don’t know, it’s going to take me a long, long time, she was my best friend”.