University of Toronto installs barriers in building where student died by suicide
Posted September 30, 2019 4:00 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Canada’s largest university has installed temporary safety barriers at the computer science building on its downtown Toronto campus, where a student was found dead by suicide on Friday.
The University of Toronto said little about the circumstances surrounding the student’s death, but the union representing education workers at the school said it was the fourth confirmed suicide on the St. George campus since June 2018.
“The safety and well-being of our students are our top priorities,” said Sandy Welsh, vice-provost of students at U of T, in a written statement. “We’ve listened to concerns about the building and are putting in place measures that will improve safety.”
Welsh said the school has been working with architects to design permanent safety barriers in the Bahen Centre since spring, when another student died in the building.
Construction on a permanent solution is set to begin later this fall, the school said.
The education workers’ union, CUPE 3902, said a drop-in centre was available in front of the Bahen Centre for all those needing support.
“We are devastated to lose a student, a part of the U of T community,” the union said in a statement. “Our thoughts are with this student’s family, friends, and classmates. Our thoughts are also with the workers who were on the scene: first responders and caretakers. The work you do is meaningful and appreciated.”
Statistics Canada doesn’t track how many students die by suicide, but according to the most recent data from 2017, it was the cause of death for 547 people between the ages of 15 and 24 _ second only to accidental deaths.
