The first person in Montreal to die of COVID-19 was a member of the city’s Hasidic Jewish community.
Max Lieberman, with the Council of Hasidic Jews of Quebec, said Friday the 67-year-old victim started exhibiting flu-like symptoms Sunday, had difficulty breathing Tuesday night and died Wednesday after being put on a ventilator in hospital.
“I know him as a healthy man,” Lieberman said in an interview. “He wasn’t an old 67, he was a young 67, a very nice, gentle guy.”
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Lieberman said the family had a private, graveside funeral service instead of the more typical large affair given rules forbidding gatherings amid the COVID-19 outbreak.
“Normally there would be hundreds of people, but it was a very small funeral, ten or 12 people,” Lieberman said, adding mourners were able to listen to eulogies over the phone.
Lieberman said the community is on edge because many members had recently participated in large gatherings for a religious holiday, just prior to the introduction of widespread isolation directives by health authorities.
As each day passes since Purim festivities, Lieberman said he’s thankful.
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“The further we get from that holiday and the numbers are not going up as I’m afraid it would, the happier we are,” he said.
Schools shut in Quebec on March 13 and a decision was taken to close synagogues on March 19. The community is being urged to follow provincial public health directives to stay home and not gather in groups.
“It’s unthinkable, it’s unthinkable,” Lieberman said. “With the help of God we’ll get over it, hopefully in the next few weeks, and life at one point will be able to return to normal.”
As of Thursday, 48 per cent of Quebec’s COVID-19 cases were reported in Montreal and the city’s west-end is deemed a hot spot for the virus.
Dr. Horacio Arruda, Quebec’s director of public health, says authorities are monitoring that part of the city and will implement further measures as needed.
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Meanwhile, in Quebec’s popular weekend getaway communities, local officials are urging people to stay away.
The mayors of Mont-Tremblant and Val-David, Que. made the request after many people — including out-of-province visitors — flocked to the communities last weekend.
Mont-Tremblant Mayor Luc Brisebois said in a statement that all events are cancelled this weekend and implored people with chalets or country homes to choose one residence and stick to it.
“By commuting, you could further spread contamination in the Laurentians region and this is what we want to avoid,” Brisebois said.
Quebec has asked people to avoid travelling from region to region to stop potential spread.