MELBOURNE, Australia — More than a week after a rare condition known as thunderstorm asthma struck Australia’s second-largest city, the death toll has risen to eight, officials said Tuesday.
The two most recent victims died in hospital intensive care units on Monday night and Tuesday morning from medical complications stemming from a wild thunderstorm that struck Melbourne on Nov. 21, a Health Department statement said.
Last week’s storm caused rain-sodden ryegrass pollen grains to explode and disperse over the city, with tiny pollen particles penetrating deep into lungs.