Toronto took time out Thursday to pay tribute to a bizarre (and possibly unsafe?) fellow denizen of the downtown.

The homage began with a harmless tweet to the city, after Jason Wagar came across a lifeless raccoon on the sidewalk near the intersection of Yonge and Church streets shortly after 9 a.m. ET.

<a href="https://twitter.com/311Toronto">@311Toronto</a> There’s a dead raccoon on the sidewalk outside 819 Yonge (at the SE corner of Church). —@jasonwagar

The city replied promptly, saying animal services had been contacted and the raccoon — some on Twitter dubbed it Conrad — would be whisked away shortly.

However, nobody showed up.

So a memorial began to take shape.

Someone’s having a bit of fun with this poor guy (who’s been there since at least 8:45 this AM). Yonge & Church. <a href="http://t.co/4WshUGX4uM">pic.twitter.com/4WshUGX4uM</a> —@jasonwagar

As Conrad lay on the sidewalk, he caught the attention of Norm Kelly, a Toronto city councillor and Twitter legend.

Please have staff pick up this raccoon at 819 Yonge St, <a href="https://twitter.com/311Toronto">@311Toronto</a>. H/T <a href="https://twitter.com/jasonwagar">@jasonwagar</a>. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/TOpoli?src=hash">#TOpoli</a> <a href="http://t.co/iPSlgRfMwr">pic.twitter.com/iPSlgRfMwr</a> —@norm

After hours in the summer sun, the hashtag #DeadRacoonTO drew ever more mourners to the scene, despite the fact dead raccoons can possibly carry diseases such as rabies.

Don't quite know what to say about this sidewalk discovery except that it really brought ppl together. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/deadraccoonto?src=hash">#deadraccoonto</a> <a href="http://t.co/BJ7efipLvq">pic.twitter.com/BJ7efipLvq</a> —@misspollock

The sidewalk memorial is growing, <a href="https://twitter.com/311Toronto">@311Toronto</a>. H/T <a href="https://twitter.com/jasonwagar">@jasonwagar</a>. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/DeadRaccoonTO?src=hash">#DeadRaccoonTO</a> <a href="http://t.co/3vTUf9xB7b">pic.twitter.com/3vTUf9xB7b</a> —@norm

Almost 12 hours later, Wagar walked by the scene again and sparked a public shaming of the city's animal services.

<a href="https://twitter.com/norm">@norm</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/311Toronto">@311Toronto</a> 8:20 pm. Come on, Animal Services. <a href="http://t.co/3RPc1XdX50">pic.twitter.com/3RPc1XdX50</a> —@jasonwagar

As darkness descended, candles marked the raccoon's unceremonious deathbed.

Someone has added a donation box beside the dead raccoon. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/DeadRaccoonTO?src=hash">#DeadRaccoonTO</a> <a href="http://t.co/fXHzcf9LJu">pic.twitter.com/fXHzcf9LJu</a> —@KrisReports

Leaving some messages for <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/DeadRaccoonTO?src=hash">#DeadRaccoonTO</a> <a href="http://t.co/xirnynU4qa">pic.twitter.com/xirnynU4qa</a> —@KrisReports

Kelly then urged the people of Toronto to honour Conrad in perhaps the most fitting way possible: to leave their green bins open for the night. The city's green bins are a sort of El Dorado for foraging raccoons.

Residents are being asked to keep their green bins open tonight in honour of <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/DeadRaccoonTO?src=hash">#DeadRaccoonTO</a>. —@norm

Finally, around 11 p.m. ET, a worker arrived to take Conrad to his final resting place.

The city of Toronto worker is now preparing to remove the raccoon. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/DeadRaccoonTO?src=hash">#DeadRaccoonTO</a> <a href="http://t.co/DASkviOkiE">pic.twitter.com/DASkviOkiE</a> —@KrisReports

This is what is left of <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/DeadRaccoonTO?src=hash">#DeadRaccoonTO</a> <a href="http://t.co/PLnqjQfEyo">pic.twitter.com/PLnqjQfEyo</a> —@KrisReports

<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/DeadRaccoonTO?src=hash">#DeadRaccoonTO</a> is now gone but will never be forgotten. Picture courtesy of <a href="https://twitter.com/KrisReports">@KrisReports</a>. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/RIP?src=hash">#RIP</a> <a href="http://t.co/eWwASq8C5M">pic.twitter.com/eWwASq8C5M</a> —@norm

In typical Norm Kelly fashion, the councillor summed up the moral of the day with a bittersweet thought.