Update: Man tests negative for coronavirus

Update 6:50 p.m., Wednesday Combellack tested negative for the COVID-19 virus, according to Erie County coroner Brian Baxter. Read the full update here. Update 6:30 p.m. PERKINS TWP. — A man collapsed Sunday moments after telling a passerby he was going to die after he began having trouble breathing. Ivan Combellack, 28, died a short time later after falling ill outside the Kroger store on East Perkins Avenue. His boyfriend told police that Combellack had been diagnosed with an "upper respiratory virus" several months ago and was given the inhaler by a doctor. Erie County coroner Brian Baxter said a COVID-19 test was administered at the hospital, but the results were not available as of Monday afternoon. At about 11:50 a.m., an off-duty nurse, Kelly Hughes, saw Combellack sitting on a bench outside the store, according to a Perkins police report. She told police he took two doses of an inhaler before collapsing. "He looked at me and said, 'I'm gonna die,'" Hughes posted on social media. "I dropped my purse and instinctively started compressions. I had to." Hughes and another nurse performed CPR on Combellack, and firefighters took over CPR when they arrived. Combellack was rushed to Firelands Regional Medical Center, but he did not survive. Hughes said that despite concerns about the virus, she and the other nurse had to act. "Pray for that boy's family and for our health and safety," she wrote in a social media post. Baxter said Combellack's only known medical history was a visit to a hospital last month with flu-like symptoms, in which he was seen by staff and released, and an earlier trip to an urgent care facility with a cough. An autopsy will be done, he said. Combellack's sister, Shelly Lathem, created a social media page seeking help paying for his funeral expenses. Donations can be made to the page at this link: https://www.facebook.com/donate/238491207321879/. 'Loved by every soul' Combellack graduated from Lincoln High School in Warren, Michigan, according to Lathem. He played football during his time in school. "He was such a smart and talented young man," Lathem said. "He was so bright and he had a smile that could melt anyone's heart." Lathem said her brother was well-known and "loved by every soul," and that he had a "goofy side" and would make people laugh. "His heart was gold and he was taken way too soon from us," she said. "Losing my brother kills me so deeply, I want him remembered and I want to honor his memories as much as this world can. He deserves the best." Update 4:15 p.m. The victim, identified as 28-year-old Ivan Combellack, was tested for the coronavirus Sunday. Erie County coroner Brian Baxter said a COVID-19 test was administered at the hospital, but the results were not available as of Monday afternoon. Baxter said Combellack's only known medical history was a visit to a hospital last month with flu-like symptoms, in which he was seen by staff and released, and an earlier trip to an urgent care facility with a cough. An autopsy will be done, he said. Combellack's sister, Shelly Lathem, created a Facebook page to gather donations to cover funeral expenses. "We know times are rough so please if you can help us we would appreciate it so much," Lathem wrote on Facebook. "Ivan was so loving and kind-hearted and he would do everything for people. What has happened is devastating and we appreciate all of you guys." Donations can be made to the page at this link: https://www.facebook.com/donate/238491207321879/. The page received upwards of $3,300 toward its $4,000 goal as of Monday afternoon. Original post PERKINS TWP. - A 28-year-old Sandusky man died after collapsing outside a Perkins Township business Sunday morning, after he'd been diagnosed with an "upper respiratory virus," according to a Perkins police report. There is no confirmation from public health officials whether the man's death might be related to the COVID-19 virus, or a different virus. The Register has reached out to several local medical officials seeking that information. According to the police report, the man was outside the Kroger store in the 200 block of E. Perkins Ave. at about 11:50 a.m. and was having trouble breathing, a 911 caller told a dispatcher. Perkins firefighters performed CPR on the man and took him to a hospital, but he did not survive. The man's boyfriend told police that the man had been diagnosed with an upper respiratory virus a month or two ago, and a doctor gave him an inhaler. Two nurses who were at the store helped give the man CPR after he collapsed before the EMTs from the fire department arrived. One of those nurses, Kelly Hughes, told police the man was sitting on a bench and turning blue, and he used his inhaler twice before collapsing. "He looked at me and said, 'I'm gonna die,'" Hughes wrote on Facebook. "And then he went down." Check back for updates.