Dog owner turns down Toronto HydroÂ’s offer

subscribe

What price should Toronto Hydro pay for zapping the family pet?

Dusko Avramovic canÂ’t say how much his family should receive after Toronto HydroÂ’s stray voltage pulsed through a metal sidewalk plate on a Keele St. sidewalk and electrocuted the familyÂ’s loyal Labradoodle Mrak in January 2009.

But Avramovic told the Sun he was insulted when Toronto Hydro offered him $500 for “emotional reimbursement” and the cost of buying the family a new dog.

The $500 is the total for all four members of AvramovicÂ’s family including his one son who was walking the dog when he collapsed and Avramovic himself who tried to revive the dog by giving him CPR.

“It’s kind of insulting,” the civil engineer said. “I don’t expect millions. I don’t need the money, give me my dog back and I’ll pay you whatever you want.”

The family does have another dog now, a Black Russian Terrier named Grom — Serbian for thunder.

“We had to take a different one,” Avramovic said, explaining why they didn’t buy another Labradoodle.

Toronto Hydro spokesperson Denise Attallah said the case is in litigation and the utility has not reached a settlement yet.

“The matter is before the courts so we can’t provide any comment,” she said.

Attallah wouldnÂ’t confirm if Toronto Hydro offered $500 to the family.

The death of Mrak, was the second electrocution of a dog in less than two months along Keele St., just south of Dundas St. W., and prompted Toronto Hydro to launch a citywide inspection.

In the wake of the dog deaths, Hydro announced it would replace 15,000 steel handwells with ones made from a fibreglass resin.

A few weeks later when several students were shocked while walking down the sidewalk on a school field trip, Hydro launched a multi-million inspection blitz that utilized 600 workers — the largest mobilization in the utility’s history.

When the blitz was completed, Toronto Hydro announced it cost more than $20 million.

Related News

new england solar

New England's solar growth is creating tension over who pays for grid upgrades

BOSTON - Solar developers in Rhode Island and Massachusetts say soaring charges to interconnect with the electric grid are threatening the viability of projects. 

As more large-scale solar projects line up for connections, developers are being charged upfront for the full cost of the infrastructure upgrades required, a long-common practice that they say is now becoming untenable. 

“It is a huge issue that reflects an under-invested grid that is not ready for the volume of distributed generation that we’re seeing and that we need, particularly solar,” said Jeremy McDiarmid, vice president for policy and government affairs at the Northeast Clean Energy Council,…

READ MORE
new daimler electric vehicles

Daimler Details Gigantic Scope of Its Electrification Plan

READ MORE

new mexico wind farm

New Mexico Governor to Sign 100% Clean Electricity Bill ‘As Quickly As Possible’

READ MORE

chester-county-landfill-converts-methane-to-renewable-gas

Chester County Landfill Converts Methane to Renewable Gas

READ MORE

georgia power

City officials take clean energy message to Georgia Power, PSC

READ MORE