WATCH ABOVE: The heat in Edmonton mixed with smoke over the past several days can be a dangerous combination, particularly for the city’s most vulnerable. Lisa Wolansky explains.
EDMONTON — When it’s hot outside there’s nothing nicer than coming indoors, perhaps in the air conditioning, to cool down from the sweltering heat. But what if you had nowhere to seek shelter?
That’s the case for hundreds of Edmonton’s most vulnerable who call the streets home.
John Tonner knows all too well the struggles faced by those on the streets. The Edmonton man was once homeless and now spends his free time making sure others who are down-and-out are taken care of.
“I try and stay active with my community as much as I can,” said Tonner. “If we don’t help them who else is gonna?
“It’s me doing what I wished someone would have done for me back in the day.”
With temperatures hovering around the 30°C mark in Edmonton for the past several days, Tonner spent the weekend handing out water and other supplies to the homeless population in the McCauley and Boyle Street neighbourhoods. It’s something he does often, and after putting out a request on Facebook for help Tonner says he’s been overwhelmed with people wanting to donate items and hand them out.
“I had two or three people actually donate $100. I had a couple other people who brought me cases of water,” he said. “People have been trying to flood us with donations. Even yesterday I had to turn two people away because my truck’s already full.”
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Gordon Devitt is staying at Edmonton’s Urban Manor Housing, which provides temporary accommodations for hard-to-house men in central Edmonton. Devitt has respiratory problems and says the heat, combined with the smoky haze caused by forest fires, can be very hard to handle.
“It slows you down quite a bit,” he said. “It doesn’t take long for it to catch up and this heat just brings it on more and more.”
But Devitt says a bottle of water goes a long way.
“If I keep drinking water and that, and stay hydrated it’s okay.”
Staff members at Urban Manor keep a close eye on their residents. Executive Director Linda Noel says the facility has stocked up on water and meal supplements.
“Dehydration for a lot of these guys can happen so quickly because they are frail, very thin,” she said. “So it doesn’t take long for dehydration to set in.”
That’s why Tonner does the work he does, saying it feels nice to be able to give back to those in need.
“I know there was days where I sat there and I wished for someone to walk by and help me and give me a bottle of water or something to eat or anything,” he said.
Temperatures are expected to cool down in Edmonton this week and there is rain in the forecast.
At last count, there are just over 2,200 people who are homeless in Edmonton.
With files from Lisa Wolansky, Global News.