Updated on December 31, 2020 at 3:46 pm
Almost every semblance of normalcy has been taken away from people across the globe in 2020 but there s no loss greater than the lives taken by a disease that was unimaginable a year ago.
Among the more than 1,300 lives lost in San Diego County this year were brand new fathers, longtime grandmothers, young daughters and devoted spouses. They were nurses and frontline workers, military veterans and hobbyists with undeniable passion.
Their deaths mean there are more than 1,400 families spending the holidays without their loved ones this year, at a time when the virus is taking lives at a rampant rate more than 70 people with the disease died in San Diego in the last week alone. Across the country, there are more than 340,000 families without their loved ones.
“It’s so hard and so difficult to understand this situation, especially with this, the Christmas time,” said Arturo Renteria. His uncle, Carlos Estrada, 70, died last Friday after becoming infected with COVID-19 in October. He faced several COVID-19 complications while he was hospitalized for nearly six weeks. But Renteria said he’s choosing to remember his uncle for his joyous spirit.
“He was really happy. If you saw him, you can see his smile every time,” said Renteria
As Renteria and his family prepare to celebrate Christmas without their uncle, hundreds of San Diegans are facing the same loss. NBC 7 looked back at some of the locals whose lives were taken unexpectedly as a result of the pandemic.