NYC teacher, 30, who was twice turned away from ER and told by EMTs she was 'just having a panic attack' when she was struggling to breathe dies from coronavirus

A New York City teacher who was twice turned away from ER and was told by EMTs she was 'just having a panic attack' when she was struggling to breathe has died from coronavirus. 

Rana Zoe Mungin, 30, died in hospital Monday - more than six weeks after she first fell ill with a fever and over a month after she was put on a ventilator.

The social studies teacher at Bushwick Ascend Middle School in Brooklyn becomes at least the 65th school worker and 28th teacher in New York City to be killed by the virus. 

Her heartbroken sister announced Mungin's tragic death on Twitter on Monday.

Rana Zoe Mungin, 30, died in hospital Monday - more than six weeks after she first fell ill with a fever and over a month after she was put on a ventilator

'It is with a heavy heart that I have to inform you all that my sister, Rana Zoe, has passed away today at 12:25 p.m. due to COVID-19 complications,' Mia Mungin wrote in the post. 

'She fought a long fight but her body was too weak.' 

Mungin's death comes after she was turned away from an emergency room twice before finally being hospitalized and tested for coronavirus.

Mungin is thought to have contracted the deadly virus after Mia, a registered nurse, returned to the home they shared with a fever on March 9 after working in a hospital.  

Just days later, Mungin began showing symptoms for the virus. 

Her condition worsened and her family called for an ambulance on at least one occasion after she struggled to breathe and took her to the ER twice. 

But, despite being particularly vulnerable to coronavirus complications due to underlying health conditions including asthma and high blood pressure, medics dismissed her symptoms and refused to give her a coronavirus test. 

On one occasion, emergency responders even dismissed her complaints she was struggling to breathe, 'insinuating she was having a panic attack, saying that her lungs were clear,' Mia told PIX 11. 

The 30-year-old was finally admitted to Brookdale Hospital on March 20 and put on a ventilator. 

She was then given the experimental malaria drug hydroxychloroquine touted by President Trump.

When that didn't work, Mia lobbied for her sister to take part in clinical trials and Senator Chuck Schumer waded into the matter, writing a letter to the Food and Drug Administration for her to be accepted.

The teacher was then moved to Mount Sinai hospital in Manhattan on March 27, where she started showing signs of improvement. 

One month after going on the ventilator she woke up and she was moved to a New Jersey hospital for patients who have come off ventilators.

Just days later she died from COVID-19 complications.

Her devastated sister told Pix 11 she wished she could swap places with her.   

'I apologized that she was there,' Mia said she told her sister the day before she died.

Mia lobbied for her sister to take part in clinical trials and Senator Chuck Schumer waded into the matter, writing a letter (above) to the Food and Drug Administration for her to be accepted

'I didn't consciously bring [coronavirus] into the house, but it's something I was exposed to. If I could trade places with her, I would.'

Ascend Charter Schools issued a statement mourning the loss of the beloved teacher and paid tribute to her as a 'one-of-a-kind educator'.  

'Our entire Ascend community mourns the passing of Ascend teacher Rana Zoe Mungin, who died yesterday after a difficult struggle with COVID-19. We extend our deepest sympathy to all of Zoe’s family and loved ones,' the statement released Tuesday read.

'Zoe was a one-of-a-kind educator. She had a transformational impact on her students and colleagues at Bushwick Ascend Middle School. 

'Her principal Miatta Massaley describes what made Zoe such a special person: “Students and staff alike gravitated toward her witty personality. You could always find a group of people in the social studies room talking with Zoe after school. It was almost impossible to stop into her room for a quick question because she had a way of making people want to talk to her for hours.”' 

A staggering 65 school workers have now been killed by coronavirus in New York City, including 28 teachers.    

Mungin's tragic death comes as New York continues to be the hardest-hit of all US states amid the pandemic. 

As of Tuesday night, New York City has 11,820 deaths and 157,713 infections. 

Across the state, there have been 17,638 deaths and 295,106 confirmed cases of the deadly virus.