Regional Update: A third casualty and nine new cases
CARLETON: – The Gaspé Peninsula and Magdalen Islands Public Health Board is reporting the death of a third Manoir du Havre resident as a result of COVID-19. “This shows how this illness affects people whom we love but who are old,” says Dr. Iv Bonnier-Viger, director of Public Health for the region.
By saying that, he is also referring to the fact that 89% of the 150 Quebecers who died so far from COVID-19 are aged 70 years and older.
The number of individuals in the Gaspé Peninsula and Magdalen Islands with COVID-19 went from 66 to 75 (including the three casualties) between April 7 and 8.
Meanwhile, after two weeks of stern refusal following numerous requests, including a petition of 4,000-plus names coming from the Magdalen Islands, Dr. Bonnier-Viger has reluctantly accepted to release partial numbers about the cases per MRC. There are six MRCs on his territory of intervention.
Dr. Bonnier-Viger had previously refused to release those numbers because of his professional obligation to keep the identity of patients confidential. That is difficult to achieve considering the small size of the communities, the ease in identifying infected people in that context, and the mean comments expressed on social media. “That wickedness does not favour good health and can threaten the recovery,” says Dr. Bonnier-Viger.
From the count he has excluded the 43 cases in connection with the Manoir du Havre outbreak in Maria.
Out of the 32 remaining cases:
Avignon MRC: 8
Magdalen Islands: 7
Rocher-Percé MRC: 7
He is not releasing a breakdown for the Haute-Gaspésie, Côte-de-Gaspé and Bonaventure MRCs because the count is less than five.
Dr. Bonnier-Viger says the next update will only be issued when each of those three MRCs possess five or more cases.
As for the E. Gagnon et Fils processing plant case, he says that most of the cases made public “are not linked to infection passed on within the plant.” In other words, the three workers and the fisherman’s helper who tested positive were infected outside the plant. The plant will likely stay closed until April 17 or close to that date, “a reasonable delay to avoid additional contagion,” says Dr. Bonnier-Viger.
Regional Update: Four new COVID-19 cases, but no additional deaths
CARLETON –The Gaspé Peninsula and the Magdalen Islands Public Health Board is reporting four new cases of COVID-19, bringing the regional total to 66.
Out of that total, 39 cases are linked to the Manoir du Havre outbreak in Maria. Two residents of that private home for seniors have died as a result of that outbreak. There are also 143 people in quarantine so far, in connection with that outbreak says Dr. Iv Bonnier-Viger, director general of the Public Health Board.
He notes that five people from the Gaspé Peninsula and the Magdalen Islands with COVID-19 are currently hospitalized in Quebec City
Meanwhile, two more employees of the E. Gagnon et Fils crab processing plant in Sainte-Thérèse-de-Gaspé have tested positive for the coronavirus. They were not among those quarantined after the first employee received a positive test on April 4.
A fisherman’s helper working on one of the company’s boats has also tested positive. The plant, which was supposed to resume production on April 8 is now closed for a longer period.
“It will be closed for at least a week. Crab fishing in zone 12 (the Southern Gulf of Saint Lawrence) is delayed a bit. It will be stormy over the weekend and the Fisheries and Oceans Canada call for the season opening will only take place on April 13. It cannot start less than 72 hours after the call and at least 48 additional hours are needed to land crab. That puts us on the 18th of April, best case scenario. By then, the plant will have been closed for two weeks and the new coronavirus cases resulting from the people who are currently infected will be known. I would like more people to be tested though,” explains E. Gagnon et Fils Vice President Bill Sheehan.
In Rivière-au-Renard, the Entreprises maritimes Bouchard shipyard posted on its facebook page that one of its employees has also tested positive for the COVID-19 and that boat building activities will be stopped for two weeks.
Dr. Bonnier-Viger points out that with the arrival of milder spring days, people are tempted to get together on the region’s wharves. “It is okay to go, but the two-metre distance must still be respected. It is the equivalent of two arm lengths.” He also stresses that house cleaning duties carried out by employees of specialized businesses and non-profit organizations can be delayed when the house occupants are aged 70 or more, since the house cleaning staff goes from one house to another. “Logic dictates that minimal maintenance can be done without the use of attendants.”