Walking is usually a good one mode of transportation, except sometimes in winter when streets and sidewalks are icy. Walking costs nothing, you get outside for fresh air, and it allows you to exercise and see the neighbourhood. Its a win-win-win – unless you fall.

On February 1, a man fell at the alley’s intersection behind my house between 110 Avenue and 109A Avenue at the northern extension of 94 Street. I saw him half-laying down in the alley and called out, “Are you okay?`”

He did not answer, but he kept sitting in the middle of the alley. Then, a black car came along and the people in it stopped to help him, so I thought he would be okay, and I went inside and began washing my hair in the sink.

Then, there was a knock on my back door, and this same man was standing there asking me to call an ambulance. He could hardly talk or make sense, but he seemed to be able to walk. My hair at that point was all soapy, and I asked him to wait outside. When I called 911, they asked how old he was, so I went outside and asked him (he was in his late 40s). Then, I thought maybe he had had a stroke or something. As we were talking (with my hair dripping soap), the black car came back, and the lady said she had called an ambulance for him, and for him to wait there. I asked myself, “What should I do?” It is important to be kind, and I was not trained to help determine what was wrong with him, so an ambulance seemed like a good choice..

A big, wide fire emergency truck came, with lights flashing, taking up the whole alley, followed by an ambulance, then a rescue van. The man was gently put in the ambulance, and they closed the doors but the ambulance didn’t move for a while. The 911 people called back just after all the trucks got there, and I was able to tell the dispatcher that the man was being helped, so they didn’t need to send anyone else.

The fire truck tried to go forward and turn on 110 Avenue, but there is not enough room to do that, even with two guys with red wands guiding the driver. So, he had to back up through the alley all the way to 109A Avenue, after the ambulance and van moved. I do hope the man got the help he needed.

Finally, after all that activity, I was able to rinse my soapy hair and get it dried. As I thought about all of this later, I remembered what it was like when I fell on icy places in the last few years. A couple of times people walked past and ignored me as though I was a drunk, homeless person. I felt invisible and needed help to get up. Other times, people came over and offered to help me up. I surely don’t want to be the senior who lays there and gets run over by cars and trucks, and I do want to help others. So I’m glad I was able to be of some help to this man. It’s the small things that count sometimes, when we help others.

I was pleased to hear on the evening news that the City is cracking down on people who don’t clear their sidewalks, yet the City is responsible for clearing the ice in the alleys! I requested sanding of the alley the next day, and a grating truck came through within a half hour! Wonderful! Now its much safer to walk around this part of McCauley.

The rest of us need to keep our sidewalks clear of snow and ice so its safe to walk. When we have rain and snow with freeze-thaw periods, it’s hard to keep walks clear of ice, but if we do it right away it doesn’t build up. Some people use salt, sand, little gravel rocks, or kitty litter – it all helps, but shovelling is the first step. It only takes a few minutes and its a big help to people who walk – and we want McCauley to be a walkable neighbourhood!