Production on donation bins on hold

A Hamilton-based company that makes clothing donation bins for several charitable organizations is putting production on hold after a woman in Toronto was found dead inside one of their bins overnight.

First-responders surround a clothing donation bin behind an apartment in downtown Toronto after a woman was found dead inside the bin.

Police were called after the woman was found partially inside the metal box around 1:30 am. Police say they aren’t considering this as foul play but as death by mis-adventure.

This is the eighth death involving a charity bin in Canada since 2015, five of which have occurred in British Columbia, one as recent as last week.

While it’s a rarity, the death prompted Toronto Mayor John Tory to include safety in the city’s review of it’s dropbox bylaw.

The City of Hamilton says they don’t licence donation bins and that first-responders have never been called to similar situations.

While the city isn’t taking action, a company in Hamilton is. Rangeview Fabricating, which produced the bin the woman was found in, is stopping production as they look to improve safety.

Rangeview is asking charities to remove a metal bar that creates a pinch point when someone tries to climb inside. for the sake of safety, the company says doing so may leave donated clothes vulnerable to theft.

Diabetes Canada, which has it’s bins made by Rangeview, said in a statement last week that they have already adjusted 240 of their bins across Ontario. That action was prompted by the death of a Vancouver man who died in one of their bins on December 30th of last year.