Woman, 90, is fourth Quebec senior to die after being found outside in past month

MONTREAL — Quebec’s coroner is investigating the case of a 90-year-old woman who died after her body was found outside her retirement home on New Year’s Day.

Her death marks the fourth time in roughly one month that a person older than 70 has been found dead outside or has died shortly after they were discovered in the cold.

Provincial police are assisting the coroner and say the woman died in hospital not long after she was found in Lac-au-Saumon, Que., about 570 kilometres northeast of Montreal.

Provincial police Sgt. Frédéric Deshaies says an autopsy will be performed and it will be up to the coroner to determine cause of death.

In a Facebook message Tuesday, the residence offered its condolences to the family and loved ones of the deceased woman.

The care centre said its security protocols had been strictly followed in the moments before her death and that additional measures had been introduced in the past few years.

The coroner is also investigating the death of an 88-year-old woman who was found dead outside a residence in Laval, Que., in early December.

That same week, an 84-year-old woman died after wandering from her family home in Longueuil, Que., and a 78-year-old man was found dead outside a social housing building on Montreal’s North Shore.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 7, 2025.