Residents are asking to recall donation bins after a 34-year-old man died after becoming trapped in the access point of a bin.
The incident took place at a Community Living Society Bin in Ambleside Park in West Vancouver.
This is not the first time someone has died in a donation bin; other deaths due to entering a donation bin include:
- July 2018: a woman died in a Developmental Disabilities Association bin at the West Point Grey Community Centre in Vancouver.
- March 2016: a 20 year old man died in a clothing bin in Surrey.
- September 2015: a woman died in a bin in Pitt Meadows.
However, after this latest tragedy, residents are asking for total recall of clothing donation bins in B.C.
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Recalling Donation Bins
Nicole Mucci, Creative Producer, Media Communications at the Union Gospel, said donation bins across Metro Vancouver need to be recalled.
“It’s time to just pull these bins off the streets until they can re equip them,” she said.
The openings of the bins are designed to close after a donation as placed inside, therefore this trigger could be fatal if someone gets stuck part way in the opening.
“It’s devastating to think that four people have lost their lives in B.C. over the past few years due to the structural design and crawling in, in their desperate moments,” said Mucci.
There are resources for the homeless to try to keep incidents like this from happening, such as the shelters that were announced to open in Maple Ridge.
Communications Director for the District of West Vancouver, Donna Powers said the district would look at options available to them.
“The district is committed to making the necessary changes to ensure this does not happen again,” said Powers.
