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home / 世界杯决赛2022

edmonton's shelters and vulnerable fight frostbite, omicron as cold snap continues

weather-related injuries in and around edmonton are on ...

by hamdi issawi

dec 30 2021
read time 3 minute read
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a homeless encampment on 100 street near 106 avenue in edmonton on wednesday, dec. 29, 2021. larry wong / postmedia
weather-related injuries in and around edmonton are on the rise as persistent and extreme cold conditions threaten the health and safety of vulnerable residents.

since the city of edmonton activated its extreme weather response on dec. 14, boyle street community services, which hosts a daytime drop-in shelter, has seen about 15 cases of mild to moderate frostbite — an average of one case per day, said kassidy green, development team lead for the inner-city agency.

“severe cases of frostbite can result in losing fingers or toes, which has an impact on people’s well-being beyond the few weeks of severe winter weather,” green said, noting that hypothermia is also a serious concern. “it’s something we see in our community members every year coming out of bouts of cold weather.”

in response, the organization has started a fund to help get warm winter gear in (and on) the hands of those who need it.

while environment canada’s extreme cold warning remains in effect for edmonton and most of the province, alberta health services spokesperson james woods said the last few weeks “have been extremely busy” for emergency medical services (ems) crews.
in an email statement to postmedia, woods said ems responded to 78 cold weather calls in the edmonton area since dec. 14, of which 49 came in the past week — 14 on boxing day alone.
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the first week of december, on the other hand, only saw 12 such calls for assistance, he added.

in response to the cold, some of the city’s day and night shelters have increased capacity limits, but those spaces have already been reduced as a public health measure in response to the covid-19 pandemic.

to help those forced outdoors find a place to warm their toes, the city is using edmonton transit service buses to shuttle passengers between a variety of key stops, such as the overnight shelter operated by the mustard seed at commonwealth stadium.
dean kurpjuweit, chief regional officer for the mustard seed in edmonton, said the cold weather buses are a valuable tool to help vulnerable edmontonians limit outdoor exposure while searching for accommodation.
“the worst thing is when you arrive at a shelter, find out it’s full, and you’ve got another hour and a half walk to the next nearest shelter and it’s -40 c,” he said. “that does not work.”
during the cold snap, he added, the organization’s three shelters, which includes a space at  commonwealth stadium that’s been expanded to hold 200 people, have been operating at or near capacity, though the organization has yet to activate an extra 80 reserve beds at the sports complex if needed.
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in addition to hazards such as frostbite or hypothermia, kurpjuweit said, the cold weather heightens the need to address year-round issues such as foot care and wound cleaning.
layered on top of weather concerns is the risk surrounding the omicron variant, the new and highly infectious mutation of the virus that causes covid-19. it’s as much a concern for shelter clients as the staff running the facilities, kurpjuweit said.
“the concern right now is if we have too many staff that are symptomatic or test positive or need to isolate will we be able to continue to provide services?” he said. “so for us, it’s not just about client concerns, but also keeping our staff safe as well.”
passersby who see someone outside and in need of assistance can call the crisis diversion line at 211, or call 911 for emergencies.
hissawi@postmedia.com
@hamdiissawi

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