Lucky to be alive Freak carbon monoxide incident leaves man grieving loss of friend with ’so much heart,’ beloved dachshund By: Tyler Searle Posted: 6:07 PM CST Friday, Feb. 14, 2025 Last Modified: 6:53 PM CST Friday, Feb. 14, 2025 Updates

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Victor Danyliuk remembers little about the freak accident that killed his elderly friend and beloved dog, and left him unconscious inside his exhaust-filled station wagon.

But Danyliuk, 67, knows he is lucky to be alive. He was told as much by the friends, family and medical staff who stood by his side as he fought for his life over the past three weeks.

On Friday, just three days after leaving a Winnipeg hospital bed, Danyliuk shared his story with the Free Press, speaking publicly for the first time since the tragic Jan. 24 incident.

“It was quite traumatic,” Danyliuk said — a hospital-issued bracelet still affixed to his wrist as he recounted the events of that day as best he could.

Sometime around 9:20 a.m. that morning, Danyliuk, his dog Buster and his 84-year-old landlord Marvin Amot piled into Danyliuk’s 2005 Volkswagen Jetta, intending to take the dachshund to the vet.

As Danyliuk backed out of the parking space behind their Nassau Street apartment, the car got stuck on a patch of ice, he said.

“I left Marvin and Buster in the vehicle and I got out to take a look at what was happening underneath. I didn’t see a lot of snow… and so I thought, ‘Oh, this will be nothing, I’ll get in and we will be able to extricate ourselves,’” Danyliuk said.

“I closed the door and that’s the last thing I remember.”

Unknown to Danyliuk, the car was filling with carbon monoxide as it spun out on this ice. The toxic, odorless gas quickly caused him and Amot to lose consciousness.

Danyliuk believes they remained inside the vehicle for more than four hours before another building resident noticed them and called for help, he said.

Emergency responders found both men in critical condition and took them to the hospital. Amot was declared dead shortly after.

Buster died at the scene.

Danyliuk was not expected to survive.

“I went (to the hospital) that night and thought, ‘I’m saying goodbye to him,’” his brother, Boris Danyliuk, told the Free Press.

“I kissed him on the forehead and whispered into his ear. I said, ‘Hey, if you think it’s your time to go to rejoin the universal consciousness, then go, but if it’s not, then come back.’”

Danyliuk awoke in hospital one day later.

“The hospital couldn’t believe that he pulled through. They told me a couple times that they thought he was brain-dead,” Boris said.

Medical staff informed Danyliuk that his friend and dog were dead. It took him several days to comprehend the tragic news, he said.

“You’re lying there, with tubes going into you. The loss of Buster was a lot, and the fact that Marvin was gone,” he said.

“Marvin, he had a very easy-going temperament…. He was a good soul who loved animals. He had so much heart.”

Danyliuk said he moved into the apartment just under four years ago and quickly became friends with Amot, who owned the property.

He described him as a generous landlord who placed people over profits, often allowing tenants who’d fallen on hard times to stay in the building, giving them extra time to pay their rent.

The men would frequently watch sports and run errands together. If Danyliuk was away, Amot would look after Buster.

The Winnipeg Police Service issued a news release the day after the incident saying the car’s tailpipe had been clogged with snow, causing the vehicle to fill with toxic fumes.

Danyliuk said there was also a pre-existing crack in the vehicle’s exhaust system that likely exacerbated the issue.

He’d already had the crack assessed by a mechanic and was saving money to get it fixed, he said.

Danyliuk urged others to have their own vehicles checked, and to stay on top of maintenance, whenever possible.

It is unknown whether Danyliuk will have ongoing medical issues as a result of the poisoning. He is currently staying at his brother’s home in south Winnipeg while he recovers.

He has not yet returned home to his apartment, owing to diabetic ulcers and a knee injury that resulted from the incident, he said.

Danyliuk said he will forever miss his “best friend” Buster and his buddy Marvin.

tyler.searle@freepress.mb.ca