Calgary police are investigating the death of a senior found suffering from cold exposure outside the long-term care home she lived at early Monday morning.
Police said the 91-year-old woman was last seen in the Extendicare Cedars Villa facility by staff at roughly 1:15 a.m., and workers noticed she was missing at about 3:30 a.m.
More than an hour later, they called police.
In a Thursday statement, the Calgary Police Service said officers responded at 4:45 a.m. to reports a person was missing at Extendicare Cedars Villa in southwest Calgary.
“A short time later, the missing person, an elderly woman, was located on the grounds of the care facility outdoors and treated by EMS for cold exposure,” the police said.
The 91-year-old woman later died.
According to Environment Canada data, between the hours of 1 a.m. and 6 a.m. Monday, temperatures dipped as low as -18.5 C — with the windchill as low as -25 — and the city saw snow, ice crystals and fog.
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CPS said it’s working with staff at the long-term care facility “to determine the circumstances around the death of the woman.”
“As the investigation is still in its early stages, no further information can be released at this time,” police said.
Extendicare didn’t answer specific questions about the circumstances around the senior disappearing, or the amount of time it took for police to be contacted, but said it has “started an investigation to better understand what happened.”
“This is a difficult time for the resident’s family and our entire community and we’re working to support them as best we can.”
Global News has reached out to Alberta Health Services for comment. This story will be updated if a response is received.
Sarah Lillywhite said both her parents are in the Cedars Villa facility, with her father having moved in just this year.
She said she can’t imagine the heartbreak the family of the woman is now going through, but said in her experience, Cedars Villa has been a safe and secure home for her parents.
“I have seen nothing but exceptional, compassionate care,” Lillywhite said.
“Whether it be prior years’ flu seasons, or this year’s pandemic. I have to participate in the security because I have access to go in and out, and I have always been deeply impressed by the care and the standards around the care and the security.”
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