2 new cases of measles on Montreal’s West Island has public health scrambling to contain spread

Montreal’s public health authority is trying to track down anyone who was in one of six places, most of them in Montreal’s West Island last week, as they might have been exposed to the measles virus.

Dr. Mylène Drouin, the director of public health for the Montreal region, said the investigation is linked to two new cases of measles, linked to another case which the public health authority learned of on May 2.

Drouin estimates as many as 200 people may have been exposed to a person contaminated by measles over a period of three days — May 11, 12 and 14.

“​Every case of measles is an outbreak for us because we have to stop the chain of transmission,” Drouin told reporters Thursday afternoon.

The places where people might have been exposed to the virus are:

• Des Sources high school, 2900 Lake Street, on May 11 between 12:00 and 1:05 p.m.
• Tim Hortons, 3760 Sources Boulevard, on May 11, between 12:25 and 13:35 p.m.
• Royal Bank, 4400 Sources Boulevard, on May 11, between 12:15 and 13:25 p.m.
• Manju Beauté, a beauty salon, 3637 Sources Boulevard, on May 11, between 2 p.m. and 5 p.m.
• The Courtyard Marriott Hotel, 7000 Place Robert-Joncas in Saint-Laurent, on May 12 between 3 p.m. and 5:30 p.m.
• Les Aventuriers daycare at 196 Bates Road, in Outremont, on May 14 between 4:30 and 5:35 p.m.

These latest cases brings to seven the number of measles cases reported in Montreal this year. Drouin said this is the first time in 2019 that the highly contagious virus has spread from one person to someone else.