Philippine Ambassador to Lebanon Bernardita Catalla has died of coronavirus in a Beirut hospital this morning, the Foreign Ministry of the Philippines reported.

Catalla was 62 and had worked for the foreign ministry for 27 years, according to the National.

"With deep sadness, the Department of Foreign Affairs announces the untimely demise on April 2, 2020, of Ambassador Bernardita Catalla, Philippine Ambassador to Lebanon, from complications arising from COVID-19," the ministry said in a statement.

"A career diplomat for 27 years, service to the country has been the hallmark of Ambassador Catalla’s distinguished foreign service career," the Ministry said.

Catalla served in key posts as Consul General in Hong Kong, in Kuala Lumpur and Jakarta and also as Passport Director "where she delivered frontline service to millions of Filipinos."

Since December 2019, she led the voluntary mass repatriation program of the Philippine Embassy in Beirut as the economic crisis in the country forced hundreds of workers from their jobs largely in the service industry and as domestic helpers.

"Her ever-ready smile and infectious laughter may have been extinguished but her dedication to our country will always be there as a guiding light for all members of the Philippine foreign service," the Ministry said.

Dodo Dulay, the Foreign Ministry Undersecretary for Civilian Security and Consular Concerns, described her passing as "a great loss".