VATICAN CITY, 2 April 2005 — Pope John Paul II was clinging to life in deteriorating condition yesterday, with his breath shallow and his heart and kidneys failing, the Vatican said. A senior official suggested his death was imminent. (See also Page 11)
Italian news agency ADNKronos, without citing sources, reported that a brain monitor hooked to the pope had gone flat. But a senior Vatican official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told The Associated Press that the pope was still alive and that there was no such monitoring device in his apartment.
Another agency, APCom, said the 84-year-old pope’s condition was critical but also said John Paul was not connected to a monitor.
The ANSA news agency said there was no brain monitor in the pope’s third-floor apartment overlooking St. Peter’s Square. The monitor that had been mentioned was known as an electroencephalogram, or EEG, which measures brain wave activity.
The Vatican said yesterday morning that John Paul had suffered blood poisoning from a urinary tract infection the previous night.
Another senior Vatican official reiterated last night that the pope was in “very grave” condition but had not lost consciousness as of 9:30 p.m.
As rumors swirled about the pope’s condition, thousands of pilgrims gathered at St. Peter’s for the reciting of the rosary as part of citywide prayers for John Paul. The square, which can hold about 50,000 people, was roughly half full.
“These could be the final moments,” said Alvaro Alvarez Escobar, a Mexican priest among those gathered on the square. Tourists, pilgrims and people across Italy joined in prayers.
