99-year-old WW II veteran survives cpronavirus

A 99-year-old Brazilian military man was cured of the coronavirus and, and was discharged from hospital on Tuesday, April .

Supported by applause from the medical team that treated him and the sound of a military trumpet, Lieutenant Ermando Piveta left the Armed Forces Hospital in a wheelchair in Brasilia, where he was hospitalized for eight days.

Piveta, wearing an olive green cap, raised his arms in victory as a sign to journalists, before getting into a vehicle.

“One more battle won, now against the new coronavirus, being discharged on the day that commemorating the ‘Toma de Montese’, a successful campaign by Brazilian troops in Italy during WW II, said an  Army release.

Riveta  is in the group of over 65 years, which along with those with pre-existing medical conditions develop severe cases more frequently, according to the World Health Organization

In 1942, Piveta was one of the members of the Fourth Mounted Artillery Regiment of Brazil who traveled on the ship “Almirante Alexandrino” to Dakar, in Senegal, to participate in war exercises.

Brazil remained neutral at the beginning of World War II , but ended up aligning itself with the allies and declaring war on the Axis formed by Nazi Germany and fascist Italy. A Brazilian  Expeditionary Force (FEB) of more than 25,000 men was sent in 1944 to fight in Italy.

Brazil, with more than 210 million inhabitants, is the Latin American country most affected by the coronavirus, which until Monday had left more than 1,300 dead and 23,000 infected.

The Brazil  Ministry of Health expects the disease to reach its peak at the beginning of May.