Last Updated on March 24, 2020
A man and wife, who were completely healthy and showed no signs of coronavirus, decided to take fish tank cleaner which contained chloroquine as one of many ingredients. The husband died and the wife was in critical condition.
The surviving widow blames, perhaps naturally, President Donald Trump, as he suggested hydroxychloroquine – a malaria drug and completely different compound than that used in fish tanks – as a possible coronavirus cure, citing medical literature and limited existing research.
Speaking to NBC News, the widow blamed President Trump, saying “We saw Trump on TV — every channel — & all of his buddies and that this was safe.”
She also claimed that she had the fish tank cleaner on hand because the couple used to own Koi fish.
President Trump never claimed that Americans should take the drug en masse, nor did he mention anything about fish tank cleaner being a viable treatment option for those with coronavirus. The couple also did not have coronavirus, and decided to ingest the fish tank cleaner as a preventative measure.
Quickly, the mainstream media, including NBC News, Axios, Buzzfeed, and many others attempted to use the man’s death and the woman’s critical condition against President Trump.
One news outlet, Axios, issued a correction notice and changed their article after severe blowback.
“We have deleted this tweet and corrected our story because it did not reflect the full nature of the self-medication done with an additive commonly used to clean fish tanks,” wrote Axios on Twitter.
We have deleted this tweet and corrected our story because it did not reflect the full nature of the self-medication done with an additive commonly used to clean fish tanks. https://t.co/0zucqRaIkI pic.twitter.com/3YY86rju2w
— Axios (@axios) March 24, 2020
Meanwhile, the actual hydroxychloroquine has, thus far, showed extreme promise in treating coronavirus.
The New York Post noted that one patient who was treated with the drug after mentioning it to his doctor was miraculously cured overnight:
After about an hour after taking the pills, Giardinieri said, it felt like his heart was beating out of his chest and, about two hours later, he had another episode where he couldn’t breathe.
He says he was given Benadryl and some other drugs and that when he woke up around 4:45 a.m., it was “like nothing ever happened.”
He’s since had no fever or pain and can breathe again. Giardinieri said doctors believe the episodes he experienced were not a reaction to the medicine but his body fighting off the virus.
The drug has also seen use in Europe, where it has had a 100 per cent success rate in treating coronavirus in some instances.
When President Trump first acknowledged the drug’s seeming efficacy in treating coronavirus, some members of the media complained the president was offering the world “baseless hope.”
If you have symptoms of coronavirus, do not self medicate with fish tank cleaner. Self quarantine immediately and contact a medical provider for further instruction.
