Washington, March 21: NBC News employee Larry Edgeworth, infected with novel coronavirus, succumbed to death on Friday. The company issued a statement confirming his death, with media group's chairman Andy Lack leading the deceased's colleagues in mourning his demise. The wife of Edgeworth confirmed that he was facing other health issues as well which minimised his chances of survival after being hit by COVID-19. Coronavirus In US: COVID-19 Spreads to all 50 States of America, Check The State-Wise Map of The Spread of The Pandemic in USA.

Edgeworth was currently deputed at the equipment room of NBC News' headquarters in Manhattan. Earlier, he had served for 25 years as an audio technician for the network. The journalist is survived by two children, apart from his wife. Media personnel of rival companies including ABC News, CBS News, CNN, The New York Times, Vox Media and Conde Nast also expressed sorrow over the demise.

"Prayers to the family of NBC’s Larry Edgeworth Broken heart and my former colleagues at 30 Rock. He died after testing positive for #coronavirus. Larry would always offer to help me ...even after I moved to CBS. He just wanted to see another brother win (sic)," said DeMarco Morgan, a news anchor of CBS.

See Morgan's Tweet

Andy Lack, in his memo, said NBC News won't be the same organisation with the sorrowful demise of Edgeworth. "Many of you were fortunate enough to work with Larry over the years, so you know that he was the guy you wanted by your side no matter where you were," he said.

"On Wednesday we told you Larry had tested positive for Covid-19, though for privacy reasons we did not share his name at that time. According to his wife, Larry suffered from other health issues that led him to succumb to the illness. As we have heard from medical professionals, those with underlying health concerns are sadly the most vulnerable," Lack further added.

The total number of coronavirus cases in the United States surged to 14,589 on Thursday, whereas, the number of deaths climbed to 218. Worldwide, Italy has emerged as the most affected country over 4,000 deaths. The total number of fatalities across the globe jumped to over 11,000, whereas, the number of infected cases climbed to 256,296.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 21, 2020 12:17 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).