Older Lady Falls in front of NoFrills, Scarborough

The randomness of life has once again asserted itself in Agincourt Mall, in front of NoFrills, Kennedy/Sheppard at 09:15 June 03 2011, an older Italian lady fell, cut her finger and could not get up. Her elderly husband could not help her and he was very distraught. A crowd gathered and we assessed her condition, which seemed not life threatening. Eventually an ambulance came and took her away. What was surprising to me was my reaction: Because she fell down in the middle of the road in front of our busy NoFrills, on the grounds of Agincourt Mall, that we were in danger of getting run down by dangerous and inattentive Scarborough drivers.

I had just parked my car, right in front of the road across from the NoFrills entrance and heard a cry out. Twenty feet from me an older Italian lady had just fallen and was laying down on the road in front of NoFrills. She was face up, lying on her back. Her left leg was outstretched and straight, right leg was bent at the knee , right foot flat on the ground. Her white purse was partially underneath her left leg and partially in between her legs. I did not see her fall, though I was first to get to her. There was a bit of blood on the ground and all over her hand. She was bleeding but not profusely. She wore a black sweater, top, pants and shoes. He wore a beige jacket, which had some blood on the front shoulder, presumably transferred from touching his wife’s hand.

The weather was clear, blue sky with a slight 15km wind. Visibility was very clear. There were no obstructions nor tripping hazards on the roadway. The roadway was clear of vehicular traffic.

I asked her if she needed help and she said “Yes”. She had just fallen, she had cut her hand and thought her finger was broken. There was an avulsion on her middle finger, palmar side, left hand about one cm in diameter. She wore a gold wedding band on her left hand, on her fourth finger. I saw no other cuts, but did not clean up her hand nor did I explore further. We did not move her. Her husband, hovering over her, could not get her up and was very distraught. They were speaking Italian, so I do not know what they were saying. Eventually others came to out assistance. Someone immediately called 911. I asked for and received some tissue, which I put on her hand to soak up the blood. Someone gave me three plastic bags, which I put under her head. I asked her if she felt pain anywhere else and she said “No”. She was breathing well and was moving her legs and arms. We all asked her to lie still and not move. She was worried that she would hurt her knees, as she had had a couple of knee surgeries within the last couple of years. The last knee surgery was one year ago.

The lady lay right beside the speed bump, with her left for almost touching the speed bump, body diagonally away from the speed bump, like the base of a italicized “T”. It is possible that she tripped on the speed bump and fell down. The speed bump, from my view, was in good repair, had no obvious tripping hazards on its edges and was properly painted in bright yellow. This gave it high colour contrast against the dark grey pavement. However I did not see her fall so I cannot say for certain that she tripped on the speed bump.

There was not much else we could do but wait for EMS. Others arrived, held her hand and calmed her down. The Chinese lady that called 911 had gone into NoFrills and bought some absorbent cloth in order to soak up the blood. I worked on the husband, trying to calm him down and asked him to be strong for her. He eventually collected himself up.

We were about 10 people in the middle of the road within Agincourt Mall. I was wary, as my expectations of Scarborough drivers is very low. As we were blocking a complete lane, I was expecting someone to run us over. Thankfully this did not happen. I had to remind a couple of bystanders to stay out of the other lane because cars were driving through. Maybe I underestimate the ability of Scarborough drivers?

As the lady and her husband conversed in Italian and as we gave assistance the best we could, it became apparent that language was not an issue. That their English ability was low was not a factor in getting help from strangers. This is a testament to the people of Scarborough.

The husband was overcome with grief. It took many minutes for him to collect himself. It was obvious that he loved her very much and did not know what to do to help her. This was touching to me. After he collected himself he went back to his car and got a box of tissue.

With our help the couple calmed down. The lady’s breathing rate had dropped to more normal and she was speaking more calmly. The husband was also much calmer and stood by while we all waited together for the arrival of the ambulance.

I am not surprised that strangers came to the assistance of this couple. This is what is expected here in Canada and what happened today. Still, it is heartening to see this happen in real life, and does reaffirm the goodness of society in general. If you were this lady, or if this lady was your Mom, you would want this kind of help from strangers.

While there was blood involved, no one touched any blood. The lady was assessed for life threatening conditions. The scene was secured. An emergency 911 call was completed, with a description of place, patient and condition. There was calm all round. Nick, the manager of NoFrills and two other male employees came out to take a look. A female Nofrills employee came back with a couple of pairs of latex gloves, which some of the more experienced bystanders used. These ladies turned out to be nurses from the emergency department of, presumably, Scarborough Grace Hospital, which is 2 km away. Eventually an ambulance came with two from EMS. They were gentle with her, took about 15 minutes and then drove away.

As far as I could see, the lady had no other injuries. She should be able to recover without issue. I wish her well. For all the other people that helped out today, good on you for helping a lady in need. Your karma has been fortified today! Emeitofu.