Europe's Oldest Living Person Survives COVID-19 At Age 116

Sister André, a French nun who is believed to be Europe’s oldest living person, has defeated COVID-19 at age 116.

Source: NICOLAS TUCAT / Getty

Sister André was one of 81 residents at Sainte Catherine Labouré retirement home who tested positive for the disease last month, according to reports from The Washington Post. While 10 of those residents reportedly died from the disease, Sister André was said to have made a full recovery by Tuesday–just two days before her 117^th birthday.

Luckily, Sister André did not display any symptoms, telling France’s BFM television she was never in fear for her life following the positive test.

“No, I wasn’t scared because I wasn’t scared to die…” she said, as reported by Reuters. “I’m happy to be with you, but I would wish to be somewhere else – join my big brother and my grandfather and my grandmother.”

The communications manager for the retirement home, David Tavella, told French newspaper Var-Matin that Sister André was actually more concerned with the possible changes to her routine and the health of other residents than she was about her own health.

“She didn’t ask me about her health, but about her habits,” Tavella said. “For example, she wanted to know if meal or bedtime schedules would change. She showed no fear of the disease. On the other hand, she was very concerned about the other residents.”

Sister André is said to be the second-oldest living person in the world. The world’s oldest person is Kane Tanaka, a Japanese woman who turned 118 earlier this month, according to the Gerontology Research Group’s World Supercentenarian Rankings List.