A double drama played out in the residential streets of Ville-Marie on Tuesday: a little girl – a Ukrainian refugee moreover – was hit by a motorist who then fled. All while she was on her way to school. What shake a whole neighborhood, and darken the road record of Quebec.
After fleeing the war, Montreal will not have been a land of asylum for this family who arrived from Ukraine and lives in the borough of Ville-Marie. Tuesday morning, while walking to school with her brother and sister, a 7-year-old girl was hit by a motorist who then fled.
The victim was confirmed dead in the early evening, around 30 minutes before the start of a candlelight vigil initially aimed at supporting his recovery.
Calls to 911 began pouring in around 8:05 a.m. for a collision between a car and a pedestrian at the corner of rue de Rouen and rue Parthenais.
The driver involved in the event fled immediately after the collision, leaving the girl to fight for her life. A 40-year-old suspect was traced during the afternoon. He was questioned by investigators in the evening. The latter also spoke to numerous witnesses and checked whether surveillance cameras had captured images of the crime.
Candles and tears
Neighbors and children gathered at Parc des Royaux, one street corner from the site of the accident, around 6:30 p.m. Québec solidaire co-spokesperson Manon Massé, also an MP for the riding, was also on square. Under a few snowflakes, carrying candles and soft toys, they hugged each other, wiping away their tears.
PHOTO CHARLES WILLIAM PELLETIER, SPECIAL COLLABORATION
The victim was confirmed dead in the early evening, about thirty minutes before the start of a candlelight vigil initially aimed at supporting his recovery.
“They were little Ukrainians, they had been crossing since September, they didn’t speak much French or English”, explain the two brigadiers of the sector, who preferred to conceal their identity, because they do not have the right to speak publicly.
The world drives so fast, sometimes we’re in front of the car and we don’t know if they’re going to stop!
A sector brigadier, who testified on condition of anonymity
“He was a little blue-eyed angel,” added the other, his cheeks wet with tears. Why does it always take accidents for things to change? »
“People are angry, I am sad, really sad,” confided Philippe Bouchard, co-organizer of the rally, a little further. “I think of the parents, they are all alone here,” he added, his voice strangled. “And it’s Christmas soon…”
Mélina d’Orléans, a neighbor who also organized the rally, collected the brother and sister of the victim on Tuesday morning, after the accident, to prevent them from seeing their sister in this state. She contacted the school and the family. “It’s hard, because there are a lot of us to have children at this school, she said, sobs in her voice. We are here to send our thoughts to the family. »
Aroua, aged 8, and Sahar, 10, two school friends of the victim, were also shaken by the drama. “She will never be able to grow up, become an adult, know what love is,” denounced Aroua. “Me too, I have already almost been killed, because the cars darken, added Sahar. We can’t believe it! »
Other children on the spot, crying their heart out, told The Press nearly being hit by motorists in the school area.
A 40-year-old suspect was found later in the day and investigators were still questioning him in the early evening, the Service de police de la Ville de Montréal (SPVM) said. The vehicle, an SUV, was seized for investigation.
The CLSC came to the rescue
Louis-Philippe Piché was driving down rue Parthenais when the collision occurred. He did not see the child being hit by a motorist, but the driver of the cube truck in front of him found himself at the forefront of the drama.
PHOTO PATRICK SANFAÇON, THE PRESS
A large security perimeter has been erected and the police are currently meeting witnesses.
“We saw someone on the ground, but no one reacted. It was thought to be a person who had passed out. My wife got out of the car to see what was going on. She realized that it was serious, ”he says.
The little girl, in the middle of the road, seemed in very bad shape. Passersby then rushed to the CLSC Parthenais to ask for help. Medical personnel rushed to the victim with a cart full of first aid supplies.
According to Louis-Philippe Piché, the girl had no pulse, but thanks to resuscitation maneuvers, she managed to take a breath or two. “There was blood on his head, in his mouth,” he notes.
An intersection that has been denounced many times
Philippe Bouchard lives in front of the collision site. As soon as he saw police cars, he came out of his house to offer help. “I was shocked to see that it was a child,” said the one who is an educator in a neighborhood CPE.
PHOTO PATRICK SANFAÇON, THE PRESS
The scene of the hit-and-run, in Centre-Sud
A few years ago, this citizen requested that sidewalk overhangs be put in place at the intersection of Parthenais and Rouen streets. Thierry Robillard-Martel, he demanded the installation of speed bumps in rue Parthenais, just a few weeks ago. Another citizen contacted his borough councilors in mid-November to denounce the speed of motorists. Their demands never materialized.
In the neighborhood, there is a lot of through traffic because of the nearby Jacques-Cartier bridge. And with the closure of the Louis-Hippolyte-La Fontaine bridge-tunnel, there is even more traffic. People are impatient. They don’t make their saves properly.
Philippe Bouchard, neighborhood resident
The stop at the corner of Parthenais is almost never respected, also says a parent from Jean-Baptiste-Meilleur school. “In front of the school, it’s maximum 30 km/h, but there are some who are easily above 70 km/h. It’s a real highway, and nothing changes. »
In Quebec, pedestrians are much more at risk of dying. Although they are involved in 7% of road accidents, they represent 15% of deaths, according to data from the Société de l’assurance automobile du Québec (SAAQ).
The intersection of rue Parthenais and rue de Rouen is a school corridor, but there is no crossing guard to help children cross. The intersection is marked only by two stop signs and markings on the ground.
With the collaboration of Nicolas Bérubé, Pierre-André Normandin and Henri Ouellette-Vézina, The Press