Teen critically injured after falling off 4th floor balcony on Othello Avenue Sunday morning
A 19-year-old woman was critically injured after she fell off a fourth-floor balcony in southeast Ottawa early Sunday morning, paramedics say.
It happened at the Pleasant Park Place apartment building at 2035 Othello Ave., off Pleasant Park Road, at about 2:30 a.m.
When paramedics arrived they found the teen lying at the bottom of a concrete loading dock. Her injuries included head and abdominal trauma, as well as a fractured thigh bone.
Paramedics estimate the woman had fallen from a height of about 15 metres.
"She landed on concrete ground where the garbage containers get emptied, so it was a pretty significant fall," said paramedic Supt. Frank Lalonde later Sunday.
'I hope she's going to be OK'
She was taken to The Ottawa Hospital's Civic campus trauma unit in critical condition.
Melanie Beland, who lives on the ninth floor as the apartment complex, told CBC News Sunday that the incident is "very concerning."
"I don't want to point the fingers at anyone because it could be a simple mistake, but at the same time they should probably be doing more maintenance and checking the balconies way more often," Beland said.
She added that she's been living at the complex for less than a year, and that the problems she's had in her unit so far have all been dealt with promptly.
"It's sad. I hope she's going to be OK. It's a scary thing, and I know people who live in this building and you don't want any harm to be caused to anyone else. It's scary," she said.
Ottawa police are investigating.
The incident is not considered suspicious, police said.
Osgoode Properties manages the building and refused to comment Sunday, citing the ongoing investigation.
