As Toronto prepared to welcome millions of tourists for this week's Gay Pride parade, next week's Molson Indy car race and a visit by the Pope in July, city workers remained on strike for the third day on Friday, leaving mounds of trash infested with flies collecting on roadsides in some parts of the city.
Concerns about disease were rising in this city of more than two million -- Canada's biggest -- and pools and parks and ferry service to the Toronto Islands were closed as unions and local politicians could not reach a deal on wages, job security and benefits.
"I'm asking everyone to be a good citizen," Toronto Mayor Mel Lastman said. "Please don't leave garbage in the street if it's not being picked up by private contractors. Find a way to deal with it while we try and find a solution to the strike."
Nearly 7,000 workers walked off the job on Wednesday and another 17,000 -- including public health nurses, social workers, lifeguards, ambulance dispatchers -- could also strike this weekend.
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