TUCSON — Health officials in the Mexican state of Sonora, across the border from Arizona, reported over the weekend the state's first fatality from the COVID-19 pandemic, a diabetic woman who died last week in the border city of Nogales.

The woman, a 29-year-old who lived in the nearby city of Magdalena, died March 30 in Nogales, Sonora. But federal officials for Mexico's social security program didn't notify state health officials until Saturday.

“It was not one of the cases previously confirmed,” said Enrique Clausen, the Sonora health minister.

To date, Sonora has reported 33 positive cases of COVID-19, and one death. That's far less than the nearly 2500 cases and 65 deaths reported in Arizona, as of Monday morning.

The woman who died in Sonora had no travel history outside of the state. She had been recently diagnosed with diabetes, and began showing symptoms March 22, according to Clausen.

On March 28, her condition worsened, and she was hospitalized at a public clinic with breathing difficulties. The clinic is run by Mexico's social security agency, which reported the situation as a suspected case. They were able to confirm to the state on Saturday that she had died from COVID-19.

“This death should serve no longer as a warning to us, but rather to see the death of this great woman as an example of a reality that can happen to any of us," Clausen said. "None of us are immune from this illness coming and knocking on our door."

During an update Sunday, the health minister reported four new cases in the state, raising its total to 33. Three of them had traveled to the United States within the past two weeks, he said.

Travel to Arizona, and the U.S., has been a major source of concern for state health officials in Sonora. Many of the state's 33 cases involved individuals who had spent time in the United States and later began showing COVID-19 symptoms.

Concerned residents blocked the main crossing in Nogales, Sonora to demand stricter health screenings for travelers coming into Mexico from the U.S. The next day, the state deployed health staff to the border crossings to screen travelers.

Sonora Gov. Claudia Pavlovich joined the governors of other Mexican border states to call on Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador to step up federal efforts to prevent the importation of more COVID-19 cases from the U.S. to Mexico.

Have any news tips or story ideas about the U.S.-Mexico border? Reach the reporter at rafael.carranza@arizonarepublic.com, or follow him on Twitter at @RafaelCarranza.

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