Sherwood Pope, 82, and his wife Doris, 78, died on December 14 at UNC Rex Healthcare in Raleigh, North Carolina, “side by side and holding hands”, the family said in an obituary posted online.

It comes as cases in the state continue to soar with 6,729 new infections and 57 deaths reported on Wednesday alone, according to data from The New York Times. In total, North Carolina has now reported 6,342 deaths and more than 491,000 cases since the pandemic broke out.

Shelton Pope, one of the couple’s three sons, told the local news outlet WRAL that his parents started feeling unwell the weekend after Thanksgiving.

He said: “They were holding hands when they left this world and went to the pearly gates. He left shortly before she did.”

Brian Pope, another son, told the outlet that both had previous medical conditions. Sherwood had a history of Leukemia and his mother had had a heart attack.

He also told Fox News that his parents were inseparable so it was no surprise they died holding hands. “They never went to bed mad at each other,” he said.

The couple were reportedly admitted to hospital a week before they died. Doris was placed on a ventilator and Shelton had to be given oxygen, Brian said.

He added that they were at first placed in separate rooms, but as their conditions worsened Sherwood asked doctors if he could be next to his wife. “He kept saying I want to be with mama. They put both the beds together. They laid there and held hands,” Brian told the broadcaster.

Brian said the couple lay side by side for three to four hours before they died. He added: “They wanted to be with each other. When you saw one, you saw the other.”

Hospital restrictions reportedly prevented the family from being by the couple’s bedsides in their final moments.

Brian said he had no idea how his parents contracted the virus, adding that they always wore masks and sometimes even gloves when they went out. He warned: “This pandemic is not a joke. It’s real.”

Sherwood Pope, who was born on January 21, 1938, was a retired maintenance man with the North Carolina State Highway Patrol. Doris Pope, born March 21, 1942, was retired from furniture upholstery, according to the family obituary.

It read: “Mr. and Mrs. Pope attended Benson Grove Baptist Church and were extremely loved by their family and friends.”

It comes after a crowded holiday event held at a church in Hendersonville, North Carolina, was identified as the source of at least 75 COVID cases, according to the county health department.

At least 82 confirmed coronavirus cases were also linked to convocation events held earlier this month by the United House of Prayer for All People in Charlotte in October.

A month later a controversial pastor at the Kingdom City Church, who sells T-shirts claiming his church is “Virus proof”, was severely criticized after holding a week-long convocation in Charlotte, in North Carolina.