[UPDATE 9/2/20]: Toots Hibbert is now in a medically-induced coma after being admitted to a hospital in St. Andrew, Jamaica on Monday after showing coronavirus symptoms, his publicist Claude Mills told The Star.
“Toots is fighting for his life and his family is asking for prayers,” Mills told the Jamaican news outlet.
Even though Hibbert has not yet received his COVID-19 test results, he has shown all the symptoms of the virus. Members of his inner circle have also taken to quarantine and are themselves awaiting test results for the virus.
[Originally published 9/1/20]: Toots Hibbert is reportedly in an Intensive Care Unit in Jamaica awaiting the results of his COVID-19 test, the reggae icon’s family announced via Facebook on Monday. The 77-year-old founder of Toots and the Maytals was reportedly taken to a private hospital in St. Andrew after complaining of difficulty breathing.
Just last week, Toots and the Maytals released their 24th studio album, Got To Be Tough. The album marked the band’s first studio effort in a decade, and saw contributions from Ringo Starr, Ziggy Marley, Cyril Neville, and Sly Dunbar.
In a post to the Toots and the Maytals Facebook page, the Hibbert family updated fans on Toots’ condition, saying that he “is making positive progress and is receiving the best possible treatment, while he awaits the results on his COVID-19 test.” While the post doesn’t go into specifics, the overall tone shows that Toots’ condition is stable and closely monitored as he and his family await the next development in his situation.
Read the full post below.
[H/T Billboard]