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Chula Vista City councilman stricken with COVID-19 placed on respirator at hospital

Councilman Steve Padilla was admitted to UCSD Thornton Hospital and placed in its intensive care unit after experiencing worsening symptoms.

SAN DIEGO — A Chula Vista councilman who tested positive for the coronavirus is hospitalized in an intensive care unit and been placed on a respirator to aid with difficulty breathing, his daughter said Thursday night.

Councilman Steve Padilla was admitted to UCSD Thornton Hospital and placed in its intensive care unit after experiencing worsening symptoms, his daughter Ashleigh Padilla said in a statement.

"I know his amazing doctors and nurses are doing everything they can to send him home healthy when this is all over," she said. "My father asked me to pass a message: 'Everyone needs to take COVID-19 seriously. Please follow the advice of our public health professionals to reduce spread of the virus and take precautions to keep your families and our community safe."'

Padilla announced on Twitter Saturday that he has tested positive for the virus and went into isolation at home.

RELATED: Chula Vista Councilman with coronavirus: 'It's like having the worst flu'

RELATED: Chula Vista City councilmember tests positive for coronavirus

Padilla, who also chairs the state Coastal Commission, told the Voice of San Diego that he began feeling sick while in Santa Cruz on Coastal Commission business and flew home early.

Padilla told the Voice of San Diego that he had recently traveled through the San Jose Airport, where multiple Transportation Security Administration agents had tested positive for the coronavirus.

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