By Canadian Press

Girl dies after being pinned between vehicles while picked up from school

Jan 16, 2018 | 10:49 AM

TORONTO — Grief counsellors were at a north Toronto school Tuesday to help students and staff cope with the news that a five-year-old girl had died after being pinned between two SUVs.

The Toronto Catholic District School Board said the girl was walking with her father to their car after school on Monday when the incident took place just before 3:30 p.m.

Const. Clint Stibbe said Tuesday that an SUV with no one inside rolled forward and pinned the girl against her father’s Mercedes-Benz SUV.

The child was taken to a hospital where she died of her injuries.

The girl’s 42-year-old father was also struck by the rolling vehicle and was taken to hospital with non-life threatening injuries, police said.

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“I haven’t got any stats … in relation to how often we see a vehicle moving on its own,” Stibbe said.

The police traffic services division said the investigation was ongoing, and charges, if any, have not yet been determined.

Toys and flowers were left in a snowbank near St. Raphael Catholic School on Monday morning.

Students and staff were also planning on creating a memorial table for the girl at the school, the board said.

“Tragedies such as this can be difficult for anyone to accept or understand, particularly for young people,” the school board said in a statement. 

“A team of counsellors, including a social worker, psychologist and members of our chaplaincy and religion team will be on hand to support the school community today.”

The board said support workers will be on hand as long as needed.

The Canadian Press