‘Nobody intervened’: Portapique resident dies after speaking out about mental health issues – CBC
Leon Joudrey lived through the April 2020 mass shooting, but struggled to move away from the area
Nov 03, 2022
A resident of Portapique, N.S., who survived the mass shooting that began in the small community in April 2020 has died suddenly after years of “hell” trying to move away from the area where many of his friends and neighbours were killed.
Leon Joudrey, 54, died Sunday, just weeks after he and Portapique residents, their loved ones and victims’ families spoke with the Mass Casualty Commission leading the public inquiry into the massacre. A transcript of that group meeting was released by the inquiry Thursday.
Joudrey talked about how hard it was navigating the mental health system in the immediate aftermath of the shootings, where 13 of the 22 victims were from Portapique. He said an offer was made to set him up with a professional who would point him in the right direction, but he was “in no state of mind” to deal with that.
“When you’re shaking every day and somebody tells you it’ll be three weeks [for help], doesn’t help you much,” Joudrey told the commission. “It’s like calling 911 and getting a recording.”
