A 10-year-old girl is just the latest in a series of pedestrian struck on city roads recently, as police appeal for caution on roads across the city of Toronto.

More than 16 pedestrians have been struck in the past few days, leading to one death, Toronto police said on Thursday.

A 10-year-old girl was awake and breathing after being struck by a vehicle in a school zone about 8 a.m. Thursday. She suffered cuts to the head and nose after being hit by a green van near Coronation Drive and Galloway Road in Scarborough's east end.

Anthony McMinniman -- the father of Talia, the collision victim --said things could have been much worse.

"The woman was going fast enough to kill her. She would have run her right down. She would have been dead," he said of the driver and what might have happened to his daughter.

McMinniman said he accompanied his daughter to school. They waited for the vehicles to stop, but then he noticed one coming out of nowhere.

Talia said her dad saved her. "He pulled me back," she said softly, a bandage over left eye. "He held me."

Reports from the scene suggest the driver may have attempted to flee the scene, but was stopped by other pedestrians.

Police confirm the driver, a 62-year-old woman, has been charged and fined in the incident.

Darker days

On Wednesday, a 50-year-old woman died after stepping into the path of a truck.

At least 16 pedestrians have been hit in recent days, during which Toronto has seen heavy rain and winds.

The upswing in incidents also comes as pedestrians adjust to the end of daylight time and a change in weather. Police said November is routinely a dangerous month for pedestrians.

Toronto police Sgt. Murray Campbell said many incidents can be linked to the inattentiveness of both drivers and pedestrians.

"Pedestrians are struck quite often in the city. It is due to inattentiveness or speed or road conditions," he said.

Campbell said drivers have to adjust to the winter conditions by slowing down and planning ahead. He added that drivers must be aware of what pedestrians face while on the road.

"Every driver becomes a pedestrian when they get out of their vehicle. You must understand the risks that are involved and you have to drive bearing those risks in mind," he said.

Campbell said pedestrians have to be alert while on the road and pay attention to where they are going. That means putting away cellphones and iPods, and not rushing to get out of the cold.

"With the change in the weather lately, with it getting colder and it getting darker for longer, everybody has to adjust to that."

With a report from CTV Toronto's Zuraidah Alman