Toronto neighbourhood wants to start a safe walk program

The wave of disappearances over the past few weeks has set the Church and Wellesley community on edge and residents have begun taking steps to ensure each other's safety.

The Church and Wellesley Neighbourhood Association revealed on Facebook yesterday there have been discussions about recruiting volunteers to assist with a Safe Walk program in response to the numerous missing persons cases recently reported in the area.

Queer people in Toronto's gay village have been and are currently going missing (and being found dead) at an alarming rate. The mainstream news doesn't cover it properly at all. People don't know and don't talk about it.

— maris (@marisbeauvoir) December 3, 2017

The proposed Safe Walk program would be volunteer-based, and the effort to get it started seems to be contingent on enough local residents stepping forward with their time and services.

Several people were reported missing over the past few weeks, while a string of disappearances amongst men has been ongoing over the past several months, even years, according to multiple reports.

Someone has also created a map to track the last known locations of the increasing number of men and women who have gone missing in the area.

Idk why I’m just hearing about this, but 5 people have gone missing and one body had been found since November around the Village. If you live downtown Toronto please be careful and try to travel with someone 😞 especially around Church and Wellesley

— elise laurenne (@EliseLaurenne) December 3, 2017

A Toronto Police task force was put in place in July to investigate the initial disappearances, but now it seems that they have increased in frequency.

As the investigation continues, residents are urging everyone to use caution while travelling in the area and stay vigilant.