dt_toronto_geek
Superstar
Another dog zapping
This is crazy.
In fairness to Hydro crews, they appear to be moving fast inspecting the sidewalk plates. Most anywhere I go I see the orange spray paint mark indicating that the plate has been tested.
Another Dog Shocked As Owner Complains Toronto Hydro Failed To Respond
Thursday February 12, 2009
No matter how hard Toronto Hydro works to fix the ongoing problem with handwells in the city, it appears they can't be going fast enough.
That became obvious again this week, when yet another dog owner claims his animal was shocked by one of the defective sidewalk plates.
Garth Watterson claims he was walking his dog Emma along a stretch of the Bloor Viaduct around 9am Wednesday, when his pet suddenly started acting oddly. After sniffing at the object on the ground, he became alarmed when she "recoiled violently and yelped."
He looked down and saw she was standing on a hydro plate on the bridge.
"Emma just came in and stepped up...and immediately bounced back," he explains.
What happened next alarmed him almost as much as the initial shock to his furry friend. He called 911 and was forced to wait for police to arrive before taking the canine to the vet. The dog appears to be fine, but the man at the other end of the leash isn't quite so relieved.
He claims he's been trying to get answers from the utility about what happened with no success.
"I've called (Toronto Hydro) about eight times total. They couldn't handle my call at this time and said I should call back at a later date, they would look into it and call before they left for the day. I've received no calls," he reveals.
Two dogs have been killed and several others have been shocked by the ongoing problem, but when CityNews revealed late last month that as many as five children on a school outing had also suffered an electric jolt, Toronto Hydro called a quick news conference to announce it was deploying 6,000 workers to check the estimated 15,000 handwells across the city and spray the checked ones a bright red colour.
They also stressed that they would quickly respond to any reports of stray electricity, leaving Watterson to wonder why his calls were ignored.
CityNews reporter Richard Madan asked Toronto Hydro President David O'Brien that very question.
He quickly got on the phone and started making calls, admitting in the end that someone dropped the ball on this very serious issue.
"Two people...said they would call him back but in the end they didn't," he admitted.
In an effort to make amends, O'Brien promised that the utility would cover his vet bills, and compensate him for any time he missed from work.
This is crazy.
In fairness to Hydro crews, they appear to be moving fast inspecting the sidewalk plates. Most anywhere I go I see the orange spray paint mark indicating that the plate has been tested.
Another Dog Shocked As Owner Complains Toronto Hydro Failed To Respond
Thursday February 12, 2009
No matter how hard Toronto Hydro works to fix the ongoing problem with handwells in the city, it appears they can't be going fast enough.
That became obvious again this week, when yet another dog owner claims his animal was shocked by one of the defective sidewalk plates.
Garth Watterson claims he was walking his dog Emma along a stretch of the Bloor Viaduct around 9am Wednesday, when his pet suddenly started acting oddly. After sniffing at the object on the ground, he became alarmed when she "recoiled violently and yelped."
He looked down and saw she was standing on a hydro plate on the bridge.
"Emma just came in and stepped up...and immediately bounced back," he explains.
What happened next alarmed him almost as much as the initial shock to his furry friend. He called 911 and was forced to wait for police to arrive before taking the canine to the vet. The dog appears to be fine, but the man at the other end of the leash isn't quite so relieved.
He claims he's been trying to get answers from the utility about what happened with no success.
"I've called (Toronto Hydro) about eight times total. They couldn't handle my call at this time and said I should call back at a later date, they would look into it and call before they left for the day. I've received no calls," he reveals.
Two dogs have been killed and several others have been shocked by the ongoing problem, but when CityNews revealed late last month that as many as five children on a school outing had also suffered an electric jolt, Toronto Hydro called a quick news conference to announce it was deploying 6,000 workers to check the estimated 15,000 handwells across the city and spray the checked ones a bright red colour.
They also stressed that they would quickly respond to any reports of stray electricity, leaving Watterson to wonder why his calls were ignored.
CityNews reporter Richard Madan asked Toronto Hydro President David O'Brien that very question.
He quickly got on the phone and started making calls, admitting in the end that someone dropped the ball on this very serious issue.
"Two people...said they would call him back but in the end they didn't," he admitted.
In an effort to make amends, O'Brien promised that the utility would cover his vet bills, and compensate him for any time he missed from work.