FRIENDS and colleagues of a popular hospital porter who died of coronavirus will get the chance to say their final goodbyes ahead of his funeral.

Krzysztof Gogolewski, who worked at Poole Hospital's maternity unit, died on February 16.

His funeral is due to be held at Poole Crematorium on Monday March 8 but due to Covid-19 restrictions there are strict limitations on the number of people who can attend.

So his family has arranged for his funeral cortege to stop outside Poole Hospital en route.

A guard of honour will be formed outside the Longfleet Road entrance to the hospital.

Krzysztof, 63, became ill several weeks before is death. He had not received the coronavirus vaccination.

Following his death, his wife, Margaret, and daughter, Marta Saganowska, paid tribute to him.

Margaret, who also works at the hospital in the sewing room of the uniform department, spent 36 years with Krzysztof.

She said: "We were always together and he only had two-and-a-half years to retirement. We were both looking forward to it so much."

Marta told how her father tested positive for Covid-19, followed by her mother and grandmother, who lives at the same address in Baiter Park in Poole.

She added: "My dad was positive first, then my mum got Covid as well, then my grandma who is 80. My grandma didn't have any symptoms.

"My dad then started to feel ill like he had flu and every day he got worse. He had a temperature of 40 degrees and his breathing became very bad."

Krzysztof spent a week in Poole Hospital, before being moved to Salisbury where he died.

Marta added: "He was one of the best. He loved his work and put his whole heart into it. He helped to fight Covid-19 and now the same disease took him away from us.

"He struggled with Covid for over a month. He was only 63-years-old. It has affected many people. I love my Daddy very much and I cannot accept his death.

"A lot of people knew him and loved him. He was helping the hospital to deal with Covid-19 and now he has died from it."

The cortege is due to arrive at the hospital entrance at around 12.25pm on Monday with the funeral service taking place at 1pm.