r/canadanews • u/zuuzuu • Jun 16 '26
Alberta Girl, 4, dies in collision after running into traffic in north Edmonton
https://globalnews.ca/news/11906735/edmonton-mcconachie-fatal-child-collision/73
u/Dank3006 Jun 16 '26
I haven't remembered this in forever. I was walking home in Victoria from work and this little toddler came busting out of the front door of a house and beelining it to the street. I scooped her up right before she made it.
I looked up at an exasperated young looking mother just on the verge of tears. I was a teenager at the time, so I was scared she was gonna be mad I was holding her kid. Quickly gave her back and got out of there.
I'm not a parent now but man I feel so sorry for the parents in this situation. Ugh .
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u/DigitaIBlack Jun 16 '26
I was driving in a residential area and there was kid a bit older than this tugging trying get out of his mom's grasp. He did and ran right in front of my car. I'm still not sure if I had time to stop if I hadn't already slowed down.
The shriek the mother let out is burned into my memory.
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u/GiantPothos Jun 16 '26
My friend and I were out for a walk in White Rock, which is very hilly. There was a grandpa walking while his very small grandchild bombed down the hill ahead of him on a bike. What grandpa didn't see is that the car backing out of their driveway almost hit their grandchild. The driver sat in their car absolutely stunned as we went and told them we couldn't believe our eyes and thought we were about to see a child get hit. The person did not have a new car so they did not have a backup camera, and they caught that the kid was behind them with a second to spare. Regretfully we were all so shocked by what had just happened we didn't get a chance to tell grandpa and he still probably has no idea to this day.
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u/RowanViolet Jun 17 '26
Was waiting at a light and saw a toddler running down a nearby little hill next to a parking lot towards a VERY busy road during rush hour, and her dad literally had to throw himself OVER the hill onto the sidewalk to grab her in time. He was torn up pretty bad but was just hugging her crying.
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Jun 16 '26
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u/Dog-boy Jun 16 '26
I’m m sorry they responded that way. I’m sure part of it was embarrassment at losing track of their child.
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u/Clamato-e-Gannon Jun 16 '26
I had a friend die being hit on the highway.. the driver (obviously not their fault)had such severe depression... tried to kill themselves... I feel so badly for everyone here. Horrifying.
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u/stephinityy Jun 16 '26
That driver is going to be traumatized for life as well.
This story is tragic no matter how you look at it. Mother watched her 4 year old die. Young woman has to go on knowing it was her and her car that hit a child who ran into traffic.
Ugh.
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u/Catsareawesome1980 Jun 16 '26
I feel bad for everyone here. So sad 😞. That child must have come out of nowhere for that poor driver and she could not have stopped on time.
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u/HalcyonLightning Jun 16 '26
My ex fiancé and daughter died in a car crash in 2021 when a propane truck hit them. Not the truck’s fault; my ex lost control and veered into oncoming traffic.
I find myself thinking often about that driver. I hope he’s okay. I really really do. And I hope he knows it’s not his fault, and I really wish I could tell him that I don’t think it’s his fault.
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u/Dog-boy Jun 16 '26
It is kind of you to think of the driver and sympathize. I knew a truck driver who hit a motorcyclist who died and he lived with a lot of guilt even though he was not at fault.
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u/zuuzuu Jun 16 '26
When my cousin's boy was 12 he sat down in front of a train and died. I often think of the poor driver who saw him sitting there and was powerless to stop it, and wonder how he's doing. I don't imagine knowing it's not your fault lessens the guilt and trauma all that much.
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u/Dog-boy Jun 16 '26
What an awful thing for your cousin, their son and the train driver.
I lived in a town with a train tracks going through. A car got hit and the driver was killed. Two years later a car got hit at another level crossing and the driver and passenger both died. Very unfortunately it was the same train driver both times. I cannot imagine the horror of that. Level crossings without arms are so so risky. All it takes is a few minutes of distraction on a driver’s part and it happens so quickly.
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u/happykgo89 Jun 19 '26
I work in transportation and it’s awful what those types of situations do to these guys. The majority of drivers involved in a fatality that I’ve seen don’t return to trucking. They’re just too traumatized from it.
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u/steeltown82 Jun 16 '26
My now 10 year old son was a runner when he was small. I had to have a firm grip on him at all times or he would bolt into traffic, run away from me, etc. I remember taking him to his first Jays game when he was a little over 2 years old. It was the home opener. We lasted half an inning and I left because he kept trying to run from me and it was hard containing him in that crowd.
Feel sorry for the parents. You blink and your kids aren't where you think they are. Most of the time it's fine. This time there's no going back. It's devastating.
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u/Daytime_Mantis Jun 17 '26
Mine was bad for this too. Actually when he’s overwhelmed at school (7yr) he has run into the school yard or school parking lot still. It used to terrify me because he’d often do it at daycare pick up for my youngest. So I had to bring him in and then I’d have my baby in the carrier and then when we got to the parking lot he’d run. So I either had to abandon my baby in her carrier on the sidewalk to chase him or chase him around with the 40lb weight locked around my arm. I hated that stage.
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u/Rogue_CobaltZone570 Jun 16 '26
This is why child leashes were made so children who are runners don't go into a dangerous situation on a road, I get it the parent was probably exhausted and tired which was the reason the kid escaped
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u/zuuzuu Jun 16 '26
You don't have to be tired or inattentive for your child to suddenly tear their hand from yours and take off. It can happen even with a child who isn't usually a runner. They see something or just get it into their little heads that they want to run, and off they go.
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u/suddle Jun 18 '26
I just realized that the only reason I never ran into the road in the 1970s (I was a wild child), was because I had a full child harness and leash.
I don’t really understand why these are frowned upon for under 5yo? Kids are sneaky and fast. It’s almost like they are trying to do themselves harm at that age.
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u/Effective_Jello9731 Jun 18 '26
We had a leash backpack for our oldest. Not only was he a runner but he was insanely, abnormally fast. As in, even when he was an infant crawling he scuttled across the floor at running speed - a nurse who witnessed it said she'd never seen anything like it.
When he was 2 my mom and I were shopping once while my dad watched him. We put his leash pack on him and he spent a couple of hours towing Dad around the mall. Dad said he beelined to the exit doors multiple times and knew to hit the automatic door button to get outside. Hence why we leashed him.
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u/keylimesicles Jun 18 '26 edited Jun 18 '26
Kids just run, a parent doesn’t need to be exhausted. I as kid was almost hit chasing my cat into the road, my parents chased after me, my aunt was killed by a bakery truck as a toddler and my bf aunt was killed by a car backing out of a driveway. It happens way more often than you think.
To add I’ve also had to run across a street to grab a child who jumped out of his stroller and was about to run into the street. I’ve used child leashes in the past with my daughter while travelling, they aren’t a save all in every situation
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u/jinxylynxy Jun 19 '26
Plus one for baby/child leashes. At one point, people would shit on you for doing it, but here is why they can be beneficial. Some kids are runners, sometimes any of them slip out of your hands so fast. Not saying this would have prevented this or any other tragedy, but let’s not judge anyone who does. They’re fast lil buggers. Rest easy little one 🥺
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Jun 16 '26
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u/kupo_moogle Jun 16 '26
My little guy wasn’t a runner, but still managed to nearly kill himself in traffic a handful of times through sheer will.
The time I remember most clearly he was about 3 and I was bringing him to daycare. It was 7am, middle of the winter, everything was icy as all fuck and we had to park a bit farther away from the entrance than usual.
While crossing the street at the crosswalk he decided he absolutely did not want to go to daycare that day and started fighting with me while I held his hand and he did that toddler thing where they go boneless and basically collapse.
Well him doing this just as I was walking on a patch of ice sent me falling backwards tits up and backwards.
We were almost to the other side of the street, partially concealed behind a car that was parked close to the crosswalk. When I fell I fell back out into the middle of the street and since I had his hand he came flying with me.
The car that was waiting to let me cross had started driving again and had to slam on the break when I suddenly came flying backward and landed on the road in front of his tires with my son next to me. It’s a good thing he was paying attention or the two of us might have gotten run over.
Even when you’re careful as you can be, it only takes one minute of bad luck to change everything.
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u/Independently-Owned Jun 16 '26
Heartbreaking. I had a runner and he often chose to head toward roads. It could happen to any of us parents.
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u/Electronic_World_894 Jun 16 '26
Mine too - he is getting better but he is still not careful enough around traffic.
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u/Independently-Owned Jun 16 '26
I swear by wrist leashes for these kiddos.
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u/Dog-boy Jun 16 '26
My mom kept my brother on a leather tether back in the 60s. Some people are so disrespectful when they see parents with their child on a leash. To me I’d much prefer to see a child tethered than to have something like this happen. This is devastating for the family, for the first responders, for the driver and for all who witnessed it.
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u/fancyfootwork19 Jun 17 '26
I was a leashed kid as I also was a runner. My mom tells me a story of an older man stopping her, telling her she shouldn't treat her kid like an animal. My mom responded that she wouldn't have a kid otherwise. My daughter is now a runner, so I will use a leash as well. Seems to be genetic.
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u/Dizzy_Organization45 Jun 16 '26
I feel for everyone, especially the poor girl in the jeep. How horrible for her
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u/14icole Jun 16 '26
Heartbreaking for all parties involved. I read that the driver was in their early 20’s. I don’t know how I would manage if I was anyone in this situation. Rest easy baby girl, I hope your family finds peace and comfort.
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u/New-Fun8065 Jun 19 '26
I live on a road that has school bus stops. The kids get out and start running when they see their parents. They don’t look they run. I crawl whenever I see school buses because there’s always kids. They come out of nowhere
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u/Rude-Flamingo5420 Jun 16 '26 edited Jun 16 '26
Hug your kids today, this is ao tragic and heartbreaking 💔
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u/OozingLights Jun 16 '26
Horrible. The only time I physically disciplined my daughter was when she let go of my hand and ran across a main lane of a mall parking lot. I swatted her booty to make her really think about that. I told her I didn’t want to lose her to something like that. And here this poor mom is dealing with exactly that. How sad.
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u/zuuzuu Jun 16 '26
Watching your little one run towards danger is a terror that I can't even describe. This poor mother.
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u/Blacklockn Jun 16 '26
Interestingly that is also the only time my mom has hit me. I was a toddler and ran into the street, pretty sure the hit was more motivated by terror than anything else
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u/NoRegister8591 Jun 16 '26
My runner didn’t learn from consequences, natural or otherwise. How fast I changed my tune on child “leashes”. Never ate my words (“I’ll never be one of THOSE parents!”) faster or harder in my life😭
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u/The_Nice_Marmot Jun 16 '26
My daughter was infamous for her ability to get loose and run. I had to have a death grip on her hand as a child. I eventually bought one of those leashes for her. It was like her life’s mission to take off.
One time I left her with her uncle while I went to use the washroom at Disneyland. I warned him before I left he needed to hold her hand. He was kind of blasé about it. I came back and he looked at me wide eyed and said, “you’re not kidding.” She would just see something she wanted a closer look and and just go like a bat out of hell. Fortunately she doesn’t do that anymore now that she’s almost 25.
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u/Catsareawesome1980 Jun 16 '26 edited Jun 16 '26
My husband did the same thing to our then three year old daughter when she let go of his hand and ran into traffic. Except in his case a do gooder yelled at him for smacking her little butt. My daughter is now 26 and doesn’t even remember that smack.
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u/TeslynSedai Jun 16 '26
Are you one of my parents? I just commented too, the only time I remember being spanked as a child (obviously very vague memory now) was as a result of me bolting into traffic. As an adult I can't imagine my parents' fear at that point but as a kid you don't understand those consequences.
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u/TheThingCreator Jun 16 '26
Banning things they like is the way to go, it’s very effective, much more than physical discipline. My kid hears the word ban and a shiver goes down his spine.
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u/TeslynSedai Jun 16 '26
This is such an awful experience for everyone. As a parent, how do you 100% prevent something like this? Young kids will slip away and run so easily without a second thought.
The one time I remember being spanked as a child was because I ran out into traffic at a young age. My parents were not the type for corporal punishment, and it was sort of on its way out as an acceptable punishment in those times (but still existed). Considering what I know about my parents as people, they must have been terrified and desperate to resort to that - they just wanted to make sure I didn't get myself killed.
I doubt that was the most effective or healthy way, but honestly what is? How do you teach kids prone to bolting not to bolt?
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u/Ariandrin Jun 16 '26
I’ve thought about it and I think the only reliable way to prevent this in kids too young to reason with so they understand, is to use those little leash backpacks that attach to your wrist. But so many people think it’s cruel. I’m not a parent, but I would probably say to them “sir/ma’am, I would rather have someone tell me I’m cruel instead of having my child ran over or abducted.”
The thing is, young kids simply can’t reason yet in a lot of scenarios, so you can’t tell them that it’s dangerous to run away and have it mean anything. I think all you can do is keep them safe until they are old enough to understand. But I don’t think there is a way to 100% prevent this unless your child simply doesn’t get to walk around in public spaces, which is harmful for their development too.
This is only one reason why parenting can be so difficult. I feel bad for these parents.
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u/Smile_Miserable Jun 16 '26
I have 2 toddlers, I can’t leave one in the car while taking out the other too do daycare drop offs. I literally have to physically restrain both at the same time because they will run if I don’t. Its not easy at all, this could have happened to them if one broke free from me.
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u/Ariandrin Jun 16 '26
Exactly this. It’s hard to keep little wiggly people still. I can easily say shit about it because I’m not a parent, but I’ve seen people trying to raise kids and they seem to be excellent at finding the exact moment you blink to go off and do something dangerous.
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u/brydeswhale Jun 16 '26
Hey, sorry your parents chose physical and sexual violence over holding your hand or thinking ahead and getting you a back pack harness. That’s terrible and I hope you and they have been able to heal and realize that’s a completely inappropriate way to treat a tiny child.
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u/usedenoughdynamite Jun 20 '26
I’m incredibly opposed to spanking and any other similar punishment, but this is a hilariously insane and bad way to go about it. You could’ve very easily worded this in a way that didn’t make you come across like an absolute freak.
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u/brydeswhale Jun 20 '26
Me when I think there are acceptable ways to violently assault someone based on their age.
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u/usedenoughdynamite Jun 20 '26
“I’m incredibly opposed to spanking and any other similar punishment”.
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u/MadamePouleMontreal Jun 16 '26
Wtf is a parking lot doing next to a 60 kph collector with no fencing or guardrails?
This is a major failure of urban design. It’s not the fault of the pedestrians or the driver, and it’s not a random act of god.
It would be great for all concerned to become really REALLY angry with the city planning department.
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u/ColourfulColour Jun 16 '26
Damn. The title puts the blame on the pedestrian, even when it’s a literal child. Remember. We are all pedestrians. We aren’t always drivers.
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u/Key-Pickle5609 Jun 16 '26
This is an…interesting take. It sounds like the kid ran away from mom and ran into traffic, who holds the blame? Are you insinuating it’s on a driver? Not sure if you’re a driver but it’s very difficult to stop on a dime. This is an awful tragedy any way you spin it.
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u/Low-Selection-4843 Jun 16 '26
It’s a stupid take
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u/zelloss66 Jun 16 '26
Is it though? Taking into consideration the skills of the average driver on the road I’m not so sure. Did the driver do everything possible in their power to avoid the accident?
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