A Victoria restaurant owner has died after being hospitalized with complications from COVID-19.
Chad Rennie, owner of Rain Dogs Wine Bar in Victoria’s Chinatown, tested positive for COVID-19 on August 6th.
According to a GoFundMe page, Rennie, a father and grandfather, had very few symptoms but within a few days he started to feel unwell and quickly declined and required hospitlization.
On August 15th, Rennie was put on a ventilator at Victoria General Hospital but his health continued to decline and was transferred to Vancouver General Hospital.
“On Sunday August 22nd, the decision was made to put him on ECMO to give his very sick lungs a chance to rest and heal,” Seanna McDonald wrote on the GoFundMe page.
“His wife, his daughters and his grandkids need him to get better as soon as possible,” added McDonald.
Despite best efforts by hospital staff, his condition continued to deteriorate and on September 25th, he was transitioned to palliative care where he passed away the following day.
Rennie’s wife Angela confirmed he passed away at 2 p.m. on Sunday, September 26th.
“There are no words today, just feelings,” she said in a Facebook post.
As of this publication, the GoFundMe surpassed its goal of $20,000 and has raised $29,405 to date.
There have been 60 deaths from COVID-19 in the Island Health regions since the pandemic began.
