KELOWNA — Environment Canada is warning that cold arctic air is spreading into the BC interior, dragging the temperature down between 5 and 10 degrees below normal.
The homeless are especially vulnerable to the cold weather. The Kelowna Gospel Mission says it can handle the demand for shelter, with 90 beds and additional space for mats if needed.
“People can get a warm cup of coffee, stay inside where its warm, so when we’d normally close during the day, we just keep our doors open,” says Jalon Grassmick, the shelter’s coordinator.
Inn from the Cold is a volunteer run shelter that’s only open during the winter, to tries and ensure no one
has to sleep outside. Since it opened this season, all 35 beds have been full almost every night.
“We definitely grow more concerned as it grows cold,” says Inn from the Cold Executive Director, Tara Tschritter, “the risk of frostbite and hypothermia goes up dramatically.”
The mercury is expected to dip to its lowest point early Tuesday morning and stay down for several days.
A full list of emergency shelters open throughout B.C. can be found here.
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