A 69-year-old man is in hospital with a broken pelvis as a result of losing control of his bicycle and falling after a collision with an unleashed dog on a section of the Martin Goodman Trail through the Beach last Friday.
The incident took place at approximately 3:45 p.m. on the trail just west of the Kew Gardens Tennis Club courts on Friday, Oct. 15.
Toronto police are looking to identify and talk to the owners of the dog involved as they did not remain at the scene of the incident.
The injured man is a resident of the Coxwell and Ashland avenues area, his sister told Beach Metro News.
She has circulated a flyer in the Beach area asking anyone with information on the incident to come forward. The flyer includes a photo of her brother on the trail beside his crashed bike after the fall.
A police report said the dog was “a reddish, mid-sized dog of a spaniel/setter breed, with some white.”
Police said the dog’s owners were a man and woman in their 30s or 40s who were on roller blades.
“My hope is that they didn’t know their dog was involved in this,” said the man’s sister. “I hope someone would not be so callous that they would run away.”
Police are looking into the incident and are also appealing to members of the public who may have surveillance camera or dashcam footage of the area at the time to contact them.
Police can be reached at 416-808-5500, or anonymously through Crime Stoppers at 416-222-8477 or online at https://www.222tips.com
The injured man’s sister said her brother will be in hospital for at least a month and is awaiting consultation with a surgeon.
“His pelvis is broken in three places. He is in bed and not allowed to move at all. He is being fed intravenously.”
UPDATE: The injured man is local resident Tedd Dillon and his sister Joan Weed has started a GoFundMe page to help him with some of the many costs he will be facing on his long journey to recovery. The GoFundMe page can be accessed at https://www.gofundme.com/f/dnr6wp-help-tedd-get-on-the-move-again?member=14800197&utm_medium=email&utm_source=customer&utm_campaign=p_email%2Binvitesupporters%2Bspider1c
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It seems in very poor taste to have a picture of the victim in distress as the cover of this article. Poor ethics for journalists.
I was disheartened to see this as well. This speaks to a bigger issue…our insensitivity to others in a media and cell phone world. I helped at the scene of a serious crash (involving a car and steetcar) in the beaches this summer before fire and paramedics arrived. When the firefighters used the jaws of life to lift the almost unconscious injured passenger out of the car, people were filming. At least one person even posted it to social media (it was taken down after people commented how horrible that was, and the poster apologized). It boggled my mind how insensitive people were, why would you want that on your phone? What if the victims family saw that or found out that way? Would anyone want that to be filmed if that was them?
Apparently it happenes a lot. A friend told me that a construction worker was badly injured at a site near the old Quarry on Clonmore and was literally dying in the street and people were standing around filming, makes me feel sick just thinking about it.
Toronto can do better, I would hope.
This is the image the man’s sister put on the posters asking for information. They will have gotten it from her.
It seems that is likely the photo the victim’s sister was posting on a flyer with the intent to get the attention of people who may have witnessed the incident. Given the family is using the photo it doesn’t seem at all inappropriate to include it in the article to help get the same attention of people who may be able to provide assistance in finding the dog’s owners.
Completely agree.
His sister posted this picture. It’s only fair to share it.
It says in the article that his sister is posting flyers around the neighbourhood with this photo on it. I think it’s a good idea if it means people keep their dogs on leashes on the trail after seeing the consequences of not doing so!
Did you even read the article? The image is from a flyer being circulated by the cyclist’s sister. She wants people to see this image in order for someone to come forward with information.
“his sister told Beach Metro News.
She has circulated a flyer in the Beach area asking anyone with information on the incident to come forward. The flyer includes a photo of her brother on the trail beside his crashed bike after the fall.”
Yes, I agree. My heart breaks for this poor man. I cannot even imagine harming someone, then fleeing the scene. Heartless!
The picture is in poor taste from the fact that the victim is in distress and that the photo looks like it’s from a 14 yearold flip phone.
How is the potential age of a phone demonstrating poor taste. That is a crazy thing to say
This dear persons life has been forever altered by thoughtless and selfish dog owner behaviour. And it’s not the first time. Sometimes people need to be shown. Maybe it will sink in But probably not.
A lot of dog owners pay little attention to keeping their dogs leashed outside of the off-leash areas in the Beaches. There have been other accidents with cyclists; people and dogs have been bitten; and still the human entitlement carries on. A bylaw officer should write some tickets as a reminder.
Agree 100%.
The sand beaches, boardwalk and parkland should be declared dog free and those disgusting smelly dog walking areas removed too.
What has happened to this gentleman is terrible. And I of course agree that dog owners need to be VERY cognizant of not having their dogs off leash and endangering others; that respect and caution is key. I do need to add however that I’ve had large dogs in the Beach for 25 years and don’t agree that a lot of owners “pay little attention to keeping dogs leashed.” Most I see and know are excellent owners who follow the rules, keep dogs leashed, clean up garbage left by others, and keep the Beach safe as we walk it early and late in the day. One does not make many. Many “visit” the Beach. Fine any who break the rules. Fine those who break the other rules too.
I admire your comment. In a safe and free society people should not be afraid of each other. They should behave in ways that consider and respect the rights of others to be and feel safe. This should be one of the most important responsibilities of our legislators and law and regulation enforcement authorities.
I have lived in Toronto for 68 years. As a child I saw city dog catchers. I have experienced a decline in the enforcement of dog ownership laws and regulations to the point where I cannot go for a walk or bicycle ride without seeing off leash dogs or dog faeces. I have been attacked by dogs 9 times. Bitten three times. I am allergic to dog faeces. It causes me to get eczema. In the last decade my eczema is getting worse so there must be more dog faeces in the environment.
Yet dog owners feel increasingly entitled to let their dogs put other peoples’ health and safety at risk and businesses are falling over themselves to become more dog friendly. I heard a woman on CBC radio say she had stopped taking her children to her local park because it has become more dog friendly than child friendly. Not a society that is becoming one where people can be or feel more safe. We need more by-law officers, who will ticket, to reverse this degeneration of human rights.
Appropriate photo use. Many self-entitled dog owners think breaking leash laws is a victimless crime. The above photo of a victim of an illegally off-leash dog critically illustrates that their assumption about “victimless crime” is dangerously wrong. This is the victim speaking out and being given voice. Too many times, victims of dog incidents are silenced; people don’t want to know, it’s not the chirpy story they want communicated when it comes to dogs. Sadly, “education” of dog owners, through victim’s photos, or stories, or stats, does not make any difference to their not caring about other people. Nothing will make them care or change their sociopathic thinking or behaviour. They just don’t care. Is this a new mindset; I don’t remember it being like this. I do not know what the answer is, but it’s becoming a population health issue. (Insert here: seemingly obligatory addendum that I am a dog lover, which happens to be true, bottle of dog treats always on my desk for visiting pooches!)
People appear to have lost their sense of humanity and moral code.
I’m sure it’s fine, it says clearly that his sister posted this picture with flyers hoping to find the dog owners. You can all relax.
I am strongly against dogs being allowed on the beach. I grew up in NJ going to the shore. Most of the communities at the shore do not allow dogs on the beaches due to health and safety concerns. How disgusting is it to go to the beach and want to sit on the sand only to find dog feces. Toronto needs to stop dogs on the beaches and stop off leash on the Boardwalk. I love all animals but the animals aren’t the problem. Its the irresponsible, entitled owners that cause the problems.
The woman who took this photo, Christine Duranleau, was asked to by the man who fell, AFTER an ambulance was called. His sister is also distributing the photo in hopes to bring attention and find the people who are responsible for their dog being off leash. Christine has posted this on social media after hearing other criticisms like those above:
“I took this photo at the injured man’s request. I stayed by his side from the moment it happened until he left in the ambulance. We’re quick to judge when we don’t know the full story.”
His sister posted this picture. It’s only fair to share it.
Agreed with above comments . Please remove the picture and give the injured man some privacy and dignity
No mention if the dog is okay. If the person is injured the dog must be worse? Hopefully they both recover okay.
The man who is a friend is the priority.
Dog?
The selfish owners took off with it…thd ones that fked without seeing if T is okay
The dog is lost in all of this though.
You’re saying because the dogs owners did something stupid, that the dog should be punished? That’s not how it works Doug.
Animals have rights too.
???
Your answer makes no sense.
What punishment to thr dog?
There is a reason for unleashes and leashed sections. I struggle to keep my puppy safe from unknown unleashed dogs in the leashed section. Because no one is there to deliver tickets there are unleashed dogs everywhere. It’s a simple rule to respect. I hope this incident will be taken as an opportunity to take action and have clearer signs and maybe someone cycling the beach to ticket owners.
Why? Read the article. The man’s own sister posted flyers with this picture. Seems fair use to me.
As a lifetime Beach resident (68 years), I have never seen this wondrous place so negatively transformed as it has been by dogs and their owners in recent years. I love all animals including dogs, but they have truly taken over our once pristine Beaches.
There is also a HUGE puddle west of the tennis courts that could also take a cyclist by surprise.
All the more reason to SLOW DOWN in the entire beach section of the bike path. If not a dog or puddle suddenly appearing, it could be a toddler, a senior or even a squirrel coming onto the path. There is also an alarming number of motorized bikes and food delivery bikes along the path as well.
I have a little different perspective. Yes the dog should not have been off leash on the Martin Goodman trail and how could the people keep an eye on the dog while they are rollerblading. That said, the man was clearly not so badly hurt that he couldn’t ask for a picture to be taken of him. Clearly, he is 100% planning to sue them. He was probably going too quickly, and he is clearly determined to find these poor young people and ruin them financially. Really, he will recover. I’m sure the dogs’ owners probably weren’t aware of what happened. If that had happened to me, I would have blamed myself for not being more careful on my bike.
Really…a pelvis broken in three places I’d okay.
Dogs must be on a leach according to the bylaw.
He will lucky to walk again snd properly never ride again.
I hope people help you if you fall.
In 1976 or 77 I was at the Canadian Bicycle Rally in Elora, Ontario. I went o the medium length ride on the Saturday to Guelph. I was in a group that got passed by three men on race bikes. A little later we crested a long, shallow hill and saw them pulled over on the right. One of them was laying under a large tree. I thought he was unconscious. He had hit an off leash dog that attacked him and crashed head first into the pavement. The owners of the property said the dog was from across the street and had often attacked people but the owners refused to keep him tied up. One of the riders in our group was a nurse. She checked for a pulse but could find none. She put her compact mirror under his nose to see if his breath would leave condensation. There was none. She said she believed he was dead.
When my parents moved to Thornhill in 1962 I went for a bicycle ride in the neighbourhood. I went South on Bayview and turned West onto Proctor Ave. One or two houses in, on the North side, a medium sized dog ran across his lawn and attacked me. He bit my ankle, causing me to crash. While I was on the ground he bit me again. A woman called him and he stopped and ran back to his house. She opened the front door, let him/her in and stepped inside and closed the door. She left me injured, scraped and bleeding in the middle of the road. I limped three blocks home. My parents took me to the hospital and called the animal control. Animal control did nothing. I met some of the children…
I like dogs and I like bikes but this happens way too often. My heart goes out to this fellow. Something similar happened to me a while ago. An off-leash dog ran across the Martin Goodman Trail into my front wheel . Fortunately, I was able to keep my balance and didn’t suffer any injuries. I was more concerned about the dog, until its owner started yelling at me. Anyway, it actually inspired a cartoon for the Beach Metro News. I tried to give it a humorous slant and raise awareness but perhaps it should’ve been much more serious in light of this recent event. These particular dog owners need to take responsibility, grow spines and come forward.
What about the fact that cyclists ♂️ are kinda insane with no regards to anyone on the path including other cyclists? This doesn’t happen if he’s not speeding. Sorry to hear he fell but still..