Corona current: 117-year-old survives Corona as Europe's oldest woman

117 year old
The oldest woman in Europe survives Corona

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Sister André is considered the oldest woman in Europe, she turned 117 on Thursday. Shortly before, the French woman had defeated a corona infection.

In the midst of the corona pandemic, there is finally good news: The oldest woman in Europe was infected with corona – and has now survived the disease well!

On February 11th, Sister André from France, born Lucile Randon, turned 117 years old. The lady celebrated her birthday in her old people's home in Toulon, in the south of France. There the sister is now being celebrated as a small miracle – because only a few weeks before she was still suffering from Covid-19.

117-year-old survived corona infection

There was a corona outbreak in her nursing home in January. Several residents died after the infection. Not so with the oldest among them: she survived. Sister André is said to have only been "very, very tired" for a while, as reported by "Der Spiegel", among others, citing the French television station BFM TV.

At 117 years of age, the woman is now the second oldest woman in the world and the oldest woman in Europe, according to the Gerontology Research Group. She is in a wheelchair and is almost blind, but still doing well. Congratulations from the World Health Organization are said to have come in for her birthday. According to Spiegel, WHO Regional Director Hans Kluge congratulated Hans Kluge at a press conference and emphasized above all Sister André's special handling of the corona virus. Even during her own illness, she cared more about the lives of her roommates than her own.

Sister André is said to have suffered from loneliness even more than the fear for her own health – she is said to have been isolated in her room during her corona illness, as the AFP news agency reports.

In return, Sister André was finally able to celebrate her 117th birthday in a video conference with her family. Later she is said to have participated in a mass in the chapel of the old people's home. In line with her special day, the oldest woman in Europe has recovered from the corona infection – and is now a figure of hope in times of the pandemic.