Jordy McPolin was at a wedding when he got the call from a neighbour telling him his uncle and roomate had been hit by a vehicle at a busy Guelph intersection.
"I lived with him for 13 years. We looked after each other," McPolin said. "I did the cooking and he did the cleaning, because he couldn't cook."
Len Humphries, 77, suffered numerous injuries around 5:45 p.m. on July 29 when he was hit by a pickup truck while crossing Speedvale Avenue West at Kathleen Street on his way to a nearby convenience store.
Originally taken to Guelph General Hospital, he was transferred to Hamilton General Hospital where he died on Friday.
Now McPolin and others that live in the neighbourhood say that unless something is done about the intersection of Kathleen Street and Speedvale Avenue West, it's only a matter of time before someone else is injured or killed.
"It was horrible, seeing him fight for his life," said McPolin, who shared an apartment with his uncle at 316 Kathleen St.
Humphries suffered a broken arm, broken shoulder, punctured lung and ruptured spleen. In hospital he developed pneumonia and an infection, his nephew said.
"He told me once 'I'm going to walk across that road one day and get hit by a car and killed,'' McPolin remembers. 'I told him 'don't talk like that.'"
Humphries was originally from England and after coming to Canada lived in Elora and was a nurse at Groves Memorial Hospital for 34 years. After retiring he moved to Guelph with his nephew, his only living relative.
Funeral arrangements are being made.
A makeshift memorial of a simple wooden cross and flowers has been placed on the corner of the intersection.
"I just really hope they do something about that intersection because I don't want anyone else to have to go through something like this," McPolin said.
John Barry has lived on the northwest corner of the intersection for 14 years, says there have been several other people struck and countless near misses.
“I’ve seen a couple of pedestrians hit here. About three years ago a man was hit by a car making a left-hand turn onto Speedvale, He went about 10 feet up in the air and smashed the windshield when he came down,” Barry said.
Four years ago a woman got her arm and hip broken crossing Speedvale Avenue. Another man, he said, was knocked over by a car but somehow wasn’t injured and walked off.
“It’s terrible at this crossing here. I don’t know what to do. It’s crazy,” Barry said. “It’s an offset intersection and you do have a bit of a blind spot when you’re making a left-hand turn. It’s not good at all there.”
Barry didn’t see the accident that killed Humphries, but he heard it.
“It’s just a matter of time. We might not have anything for three or four months, but there will be another one,” Barry said.
Another man that lives in the area but declined to give his name said he wasn't surprised somebody was killed.
"I've seen a lot of close calls there," said the man as he tended to his garden on Kathleen Street. "People just go too fast on Speedvale."
While the intersection does have traffic lights, the intersection is considered dangerous by some because of its location, given that it is on a hill with traffic often exceeding the speed limit and has four lanes.
Kathleen Street does not cross Speedvale in a straight line, but is offset, further complicating matters, particularly for those unfamiliar with the area.
Ward 3 councillor Phil Allt spoke McPolin and said he plans on discussing the issue with City Hall’s traffic department.
“I think it needs to be re-examined. The sheer volume of traffic there and the speed of the traffic that’s coming over that hill (eastbound on Speedvale) are two concerns,” Allt said.
While the speed limit of 50 km/h is ‘fair,” said Allt, the fact is “people aren’t driving 50 there.”
He would like to see if there are other measures that can be taken to make it safer.
“I think we need to look at all sorts of solutions,’ said Allt, wondering if an island in the middle of Speedvale might be “money well spent.”
“It’s an awkward intersection,” Allt said.
The driver that struck Humphries remained at the scene, said police, calling 911 and assisted him as best he could.
The accident remains under investigation.
