Coronavirus in Europe

Europe’s oldest Covid-19 survivor to celebrate 117th birthday

10 Feb, 2021

“I didn’t even notice” Europe’s oldest Covid-19 survivor on eve of 117th birthday

A french nun, Lucile Randon, is Europe’s oldest Covid-19 survivor. She tested positive for Covid-19 on January 16 but did not develop any notable symptoms.

She is only days away from her 117th birthday and is looking forward to celebrating her upcoming birthday on Thursday. Lucile tested positive for Covid-19 at her retirement home in Toulon, Southern France. After the diagnosis, she was isolated from other retirement home residents and recovered after three weeks.

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Lucile took up the name of Sister Andre when he joined the Charitable catholic order in 1944. In comments to France’s BFM television, she said, “I wasn’t scared to die.” David Travella who was the spokesperson for Sainte Catherine Laboure’s retirement home confirmed she was doing well. He narrated how Sister Andre displayed courage despite having the virus and asked if it meant changes to her meal schedules. She also showed concern for the other residents in the retirement home. Sister Andre who was born on the 11th of February 1904 is currently blind and moves about in a wheelchair.

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According to the Gerontology Research Group, the World Supercentenarian Rankings List puts her as the second oldest living person across the globe. Currently, the world’s oldest living person is Kane Tanaka from Japan who turned 118 on January 2. It is worth noting that the top 20 of the world’s oldest living people are all female.

Touching recovery stories

Last year May, a 113-year-old woman Mari Branyas from Spain’s Northen Province Girona, made headlines when she recovered from the coronavirus. Ms. Branyas also recovered after suffering mild symptoms. Her remarkable life has seen her survive the flu pandemic (1918-19), the Spanish Civil War (1936-1939), and the coronavirus.

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Last August, Anna Del Priore, the now 108-year-old resident from New Jersey also recovered from the coronavirus. Anne who still loves dancing and cooking recovered from coronavirus while residing at the Brighton Gardens that is operated by Sunrise Senior Living. Over a century years ago, Anna Del Priore was diagnosed with the Spanish flu as a kid. The pandemic of 1918 resulted in the death of over 50 million people.

France Covid-19 situation

On Tuesday, France reached a total of over 80,000 Covid-19 related deaths. France has now suffered the seventh-highest death toll of any country globally. On Tuesday alone there were 18,870 new cases confirmed, a rise from Monday’s 23,337 while hospital numbers began to drop. Olivier Veran, the French Health Minister described the Covid-19 numbers as stable with a possibility that the country won’t go into another lockdown. France has had to impose a third lockdown since December 15 and rolled out an ambitious vaccination drive that has given shots to 2 million people.

Also read: Portugal: Hospitals overwhelmed as Austria and Germany offer help

Thus far, over 107 million people globally have been infected with Covid-19 resulting in the deaths of 2.3 million people. In Europe the countries that have reported the most cases are Russia (3.8m), United Kingdom (3.8m plus), France (3.1m), Spain (2.8m), and Italy (2.5m).

VIDEO: "I have seen beautiful things, and I have seen very sad things."

French nun Sister Andre, the oldest person in Europe and who admits to eating chocolate every morning, celebrates her 116th birthday in Toulon pic.twitter.com/1u7WnmAwMU
— AFP News Agency (@AFP) February 12, 2020