'Don't sit on it' warns woman whose husband died of strep A

Kim Wetmore is urging people to go to the hospital or get a test if you've got symptoms of strep A. She doesn't want people to have to go through the same pain she is going through now.

Her husband, Dan Wetmore, died of strep A in Moncton, N.B., on Jan. 19 at the age of 49. He had been sick for more than a week.

"By him putting it off and putting it off and putting it off, it ended his life," said Wetmore. 

Canada is seeing a record number of cases of invasive Group A strep, a bacterial infection that kills roughly one in 10 people who contract it, according to data obtained by CBC News. There were more than 4,600 cases confirmed in Canada in 2023.

Invasive Group A streptococcal disease happens when the common strep A bacteria spreads beyond the places it typically infects, such as the throat or skin, where it can cause necrotizing fasciitis, known as flesh-eating disease. 

Dan Wetmore's death is part of a spike of strep in New Brunswick. According to information from the department of health on Jan. 12, there have already been two other deaths from strep A in the province.

Dr. Yves Léger, the province's acting chief medical officer of health, called it a "concerning trend" earlier in the month.

Kim said her husband started feeling sick on Jan. 8. It started with a sore throat. That weekend he decided not to work at Kurt's Sausages at the Marché Moncton Market. It wasn't something he typically missed. 

"It was his time.… He wanted to be with his Kurt's family during that barbecue and be with all those people," said Wetmore. "It was his retreat, I guess you would say. He just loved it."

But he was just feeling tired, and if it was infectious, he didn't want to get anyone else sick. By the end of the week he was starting to feel better. He went into work on Monday, but then didn't feel well again, and took the rest of the week off. He was tired, his body ached, and he was vomiting. 

"I said, 'I think you need to go to the hospital.' And he said, 'No, it's just the flu'" said Wetmore. 

But it got worse. At 6 a.m. on Jan. 19, Dan called 911. 

When Kim got to the hospital, she was told that her husband had strep A. Dan was taken to the intensive care unit. He died that afternoon. 

Since Dan died, Kim Wetmore has been overwhelmed with the support from her family and the community. She's had people she didn't know coming up to her.