As the temperature is set to drop this holiday season, the City of Edmonton is collaborating with local agencies to ensure everyone has a safe place to sleep.
As a last resort, the Central LRT station will open from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. when temperatures drop to -20 C or below and local shelters are at 90 per cent capacity. The city said the Churchill LRT station won’t be used this season due to ongoing construction.
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However, the city said local shelters should be able to handle the increase in demand for most of the extremely cold nights this season.
Data collected by the city’s Winter Emergency Response committee last winter found that local shelters were not full during the nights of extreme weather. People are encouraged to first go to a local shelter to find warmth.
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The city said it will follow Homeward Trust’s lead on when to open the LRT shelter and that procedures and guidelines will be in place to keep clients safe.
Members from Edmonton’s 24/7 Crisis Diversion Team told Global News on Sunday that they’ve been extremely busy as the temperature began to drop.
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Curtis Cardinal estimates this team responds to half the amount of calls when the temperature is warmer.
“Roughly we’re getting about 20 to 30 calls a day. That’s just our team. But there’s the other team too that’s getting maybe as much calls or more than what we’re getting,” Cardinal said. “So it’s really busy. We’ve got calls that are on dispatch right now that we need to get to as soon as we’re done this interview.”
The 24/7 Crisis Diversion Team is a collaborative partnership of six Edmonton organizations that responds around the clock to people who need a ride and a safe place during extreme temperatures.
“Even for people who are able to prepare or dress for the weather, we’re not talking about going out for three or four hours, which would be a long time, we’re talking about people who are outside for quite a bit longer. Sometimes all day and all night,” Michael Kenny, a member of the 24/7 Crisis Diversion Team, said.
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The wind chill is expected to dip to -29 C on Christmas Eve.
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