Woman dies after getting trapped inside Toronto clothing donation bin

By News Staff

A woman is dead after getting partially trapped inside a clothing donation bin in the city’s west end.

Toronto police were called to Bloor Street and Dovercourt Road just before 2 a.m. Tuesday. The donation box is located behind an apartment building.

It is unclear how the woman, who is in her 30s, became trapped in the bin. She was found unconscious and pronounced dead at the scene.

Firefighters had to use a saw to cut a couple of metal bars that hold the front drawer of the bin in place. The design allows for items that are placed inside the tilting drawer to be dropped inside the bin.

Police say the woman appears to have died after a medical episode, so the exact cause of death is not yet known.

Neighbours say this new bin was dropped off last week to replaced a previous one that was damaged from previous break-ins.

This is the eighth death related to people getting stuck inside donation bins in Canada since 2015 — five of these deaths were in British Columbia.

Last week, one of the largest manufacturers of clothing donation bins across Canada said it is open to making changes in order to prevent similar deaths from occurring in the future.

 

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