Coco Austin reveals her father has been moved to intensive care as he battles COVID-19

Coco Austin has revealed her father Steve has been moved to intensive care as he battles coronavirus in virus-hotspot Arizona. 

The model, 41, paid tribute to her dad with throwback Instagram snaps on Wednesday as she warned her fans not to dismiss the virus and also revealed that two of her aunts have also contracted COVID-19. 

Arizona health officials reported 4,682 more confirmed coronavirus cases on Monday – the most reported in a single day in the state so far and the eighth time in the past 10 days that daily cases surpassed the 3,000 mark. 

Coco warned her followers not to underestimate the virus, as she claimed her father is typically ‘strong as an ox’ and ‘never gets sick’. 

Alongside a sweet snap of the pair cuddled up and a family shot, she penned: ‘My, tough as an ox dad, the one that never goes to the doctor, the one that doesn’t even take tylenol for pain, the one that never EVER gets sick, where talking about the original Steve Austin (cuz thats his real name) is in the ICU requiring oxygen for #covid19 .. 

‘He is having trouble breathing and feels like he is being stabbed with pins throughout his body .. [sic]’

She continued: ‘For all the people that say it cant happen to your family..think again..

‘Sending happy thoughts to my father and all the families that are dealing with it❤ also sending prayers to 2 of my aunts who also have covid seems they all got it at the same time.

‘We have a big family, in the 2nd photo is my dad with all his kids. Thank you ArrowHead Hospital in AZ for attending to my dad! [sic]’

Coco gave fans an update on her father’s condition after her husband Ice-T revealed on Tuesday that his father-in-law had been hospitalised.

The musician shared a photo of Coco’s dad wearing an oxygen mask as he tweeted: ‘Coco’s father checked into the Hospital yesterday. Covid in AZ’.

Prior to posting about Coco’s dad, Ice-T – born Tracy Lauren Marrow – was outspoken about the need to wear a face mask out in public. 

‘At this point, wearing a Mask in public is more of an IQ test..’ tweeted on Sunday.  

The CDC advises everyone wear a mask while out in public.

‘Cloth face coverings are recommended as a simple barrier to help prevent respiratory droplets from traveling into the air and onto other people when the person wearing the cloth face covering coughs, sneezes, talks, or raises their voice.’ 

This week Arizona became the latest coronavirus hot spot to reverse its reopening by closing bars and gyms. 

Deaths in the state increased by 62 percent after recording 249 new fatalities in a week, bringing the death toll to 1,588.

Health officials have warned, however, that the death rate could potentially shoot back up again because fatality rates often lag behind infection rates.

According to The Guardian, Republican governor, Doug Ducey said the increase was not unexpected partly because of a wider availability of testing.  

But some experts disagree, citing a lack of a face mask requirement or contact tracing in the state. Some are calling for tighter restrictions. 

Officials say people under 35 years old have been going to bars, parties and social events without masks, becoming infected and then spreading the disease to older, more vulnerable people. 

In the past week, Florida, Louisiana, Idaho and Washington state have seen new infections more than double.

Arizona, Virginia, Alabama, Kentucky, Florida and Tennessee were the states that saw the largest increases in deaths in the past week.