A man is dead | Legionnaires’ disease outbreak in Mirabel

Three people living in the same Mirabel housing complex were diagnosed with Legionnaires’ disease last week, we learned The Press. One of them died of the disease on Friday, confirms the Laurentides Public Health Department.

Marcel Vermette, 84 years old, started to have a little shortness of breath last week and to no longer have strength in his arms and legs, to the point of no longer being able to get up. He was taken by ambulance to Saint-Jérôme hospital on September 25. “He especially had a loss of strength at the muscular level. At the hospital they gave him oxygen and antibiotics. But his condition deteriorated quickly,” says his daughter, Josée Vermette.

After his death, doctors indicated that Mr. Vermette had died of Legionnaires’ disease. Except for some controlled heart problems, the professional mechanic was in good health and “still had several years ahead of him,” said his daughter. “If he hadn’t caught this, he wouldn’t have died.” »

Notice Saturday

Director of public health for the Laurentians, D^r Éric Goyer confirms that a first case of Legionnaires’ disease was declared on September 25 in Mirabel. Then a second the next day and a third after that. The three infected people all lived at the same address: the Le Laurier seniors housing complex. An investigation was immediately launched by public health authorities.

A letter was sent to all occupants to report the occurrence of cases and encourage people to seek medical advice if they had symptoms. The missive recalled that Legionnaires’ disease is a “lung infection that is caught by breathing droplets of water contaminated by the bacteria. Legionella airborne” and that the disease is not transmissible from one person to another.

In its letter, the Public Health Department explained that the sources of contamination can be “domestic in nature (water heater, air conditioning system, spa, etc.) or environmental (cooling tower, public fountain, mister in grocery stores, etc.) “. It was recalled that the people most at risk of contracting Legionnaires’ disease are those “whose immune systems are weaker”.

On Monday, around twenty samples were taken from different locations in order to detect the source of the outbreak, explains the D^r Goyer. “We are expecting the results this Friday,” he said.

Checks were also carried out in the sector’s cooling towers to ensure that they were not the source of the outbreak.

In 2012 in Quebec, a cooling tower led to the contamination of 181 people and the death of 13 of them.

For the moment, in Mirabel, everything seems to point towards the hot water distribution system of the Le Laurier complex. The latter was cleaned on Tuesday. “We have taken all the necessary measures […]we follow Public Health,” said Caroline Chaussé, director of the Le Laurier complex.

Different symptoms

Medical advisor to the Laurentides Public Health Department, Dr.^r Marc-Étienne Bastien mentions that the bacteria Legionella is very present in the environment. And that to identify the source of an outbreak, you have to do “real detective work”. Symptoms of the disease are often respiratory in nature such as coughing or difficulty breathing. Affected people may also have digestive symptoms such as loss of appetite or nausea or vomiting, headaches, fatigue or muscle pain, among others.

M^me Vermette deplores that last weekend, it was difficult to contact officials to understand exactly what was happening. Her mother, who lived with her father, wondered if it was safe to stay at home.

The outbreak concerns some residents of the Le Laurier housing complex, including Claude Labonté. “They cleaned my taps yesterday, but I live in that place, it’s obvious that I’m worried,” he commented.

A meeting was held on Wednesday with all the occupants to answer their questions. Lise Clément, a resident, was distressed by the presence of Legionnaires’ disease in the housing complex, but the meeting calmed her down. “They explained everything to us, so I am reassured,” she said.

The D^r Goyer emphasizes that the symptoms of Legionnaires’ disease appear up to three weeks after contamination. “We are a bit like police officers who investigate after the fact. It’s a bit difficult for us. It’s a race against time,” he says.