Thread by @elamin88

Hi! The craziest thing happened at Yonge and Bloor this evening . First: we’re okay. Second: it’s nuts.

I was out at Jack Astor’s, getting some chicken tendies with my 14-months-old baby, as you do. Chicken tendies: can’t live without ‘em.

I order the tendies. They arrive. Oh man, I’m excited! It’s chicken tendies time. I’m eating. My friend is eating. My daughter is eating. I’m like 3 tendies deep. All of a sudden, my daughter starts coughing a bit. I tend to her. She stops coughing.

I start coughing.

Then my friend starts coughing, and we’re all like what a weird coincidence. My daughter starts coughing again. But this time her eyes are red.

And another thing: the table behind us start coughing uncontrollably. Now I’m like ???? Okay, this is something. Something airborne.

My brain made the calculus before I realized. Within 3 seconds, I stand up and I’m unstrapping my kid, just as everyone in the section is in now in a coughing fit, and my eyes are intensely watering.

I leave the stroller and phone in there and leave out the emergency exit. As I do, I notice 3 building employees throwing up or in a coughing FIT. Eyes fully red.

I’m in a panic but trying to keep calm because baby. Babies sense panic. That’s when I notice she too has thrown up. I wait for a security employee to tell me what the fuck is happening.

I notice by now that more people are filing out of the restaurant coughing, their shirts around their airways.

I wait for the security guard, who signals that she’s on the phone with 911. I’m like oh please, do that first.

I overhear bits of the conversation, but wait for her to tell me what happened: apparently, a man had stolen something from the Bay. He was confronted by the security people who tried to arrest him.

He took a can of fucking pepper spray and smashed it, exposing everyone.

Like I said at the start: we’re fine. The incredible emergency service workers got to us so quickly. A paramedic looked over baby. Listened to her lungs, checked skin, her eyes.

She’s fine. She’s singing and everything. After scrambling to get home, she had a long good bath.

I say scrambling because by the time the Jack Astor’s heroes went back in to get the stroller, it had been in there for 10 minutes after I left.

The paramedic was like you might not wanna take her home in that right now, “this stuff can get in the fabric.” I was like OH?????

By the time we finish talking, the building had emptied out. Subway station had closed. People in various degrees of shock: from WTF to “well this is quite a story.”

Me, I’m not sure where I am! I’m in that place where I’m still thinking: ok, gotta do this then do this then do this then register what just happened. Pure adrenaline.

After this baby goes to bed I’ll register that at 14 months, she was exposed to pepper spray. Need a minute.

in the meantime, I am grateful to the EMS staff who were pros and handled that beautifully, including the obvious look of panic in my eyes. I’m grateful to the Jack Astor’s staff who got the stroller out.

Y’all, that is not a part of your job description. Thank you so much.

I’m also thinking a lot about the things we ask building security and shop security people to do. The idea that they are allowed to make arrests, and thus put themselves in danger like this, is not fathomable to me.

That much danger? Over merchandise?!

Here is the tiny human happy and screaming into the night, probably about capitalism.

Anyway, that’s my story. She’s okay. We’re okay. Gratitude first.

Imma get some chicken tendies tomorrow. That’s the real end of the thread.

Here’s the news story about the thing: cbc.ca/news/canada/to…