The community of La Prairie is in mourning, one day after Mayor Lucie Roussel died suddenly after being stung by wasps.

Roussel was at her cottage in Stratford in the Eastern Townships on Sunday when she walked over a nest and was stung by more than 15 wasps.

She was rushed to Thetford Mines hospital where her death was pronounced.

She was 51 years old.

“Everyone was shocked by the news,” said Laurent Blais, La Prairie’s deputy mayor.

Flags in La Prairie were lowered to half-mast on Monday, and the city will announce details for her funeral at a later date.

Roussel is survived by her two children, Antonin, 19, and Constance, 18.

“I'm thinking about her family. They lost their father a few years ago. You can't do that to the family. I mean it's so sad,” said Roussel's former colleague Reine Hebert. “It's sad for the people, it's sad for her two children – for the whole city.”

Roussel was first elected as a municipal councillor in November 1999 and was elected mayor for three terms beginning in 2005.

She also held several roles in the Union of Municipalities of Quebec, including head of the Ethics Commission.

“Oh, she was respected a lot,” said resident Sylvie Trepanier. “She was a wonderful woman and a fair woman and a woman of heart. She cared for us all those years.”

A spokesperson from La Prairie city hall said the mayor was stung by a wasp last week without incident, but experts say it's often the second exposure where complications can arise.

“Usually you have to have a prior event where you've been sensitized. It's not usual that you get anaphylactic shock on first exposure,” explained MUHC allergist Dr. Joseph Shuster.
 

WATCH: MUHC allergist Dr. Joseph Shuster explains wasp sting deaths

Dr. Shuster said it's extremely rare to die of an insect sting but the amount Roussel suffered may have played a factor.

“The chance of dying from anaphylaxis is less than dying from being struck by lightning,” he said.