Connect with us

Hi, what are you looking for?

World

Two Toronto men dead as Arctic Air Mass settles on city

One, 59, had sought refuge in an abandoned truck while the other, in his 40s, laid on a bus bench wearing only a T-shirt, jeans and a hospital band.

Questions are already coming in to why two men in Toronto froze Tuesday morning in a city with over 4,000 shelter beds and a centrally-located refuge centre. For the homeless who are dealing with addiction problems or illness those beds may be to far to get to or non-existent.

There are only 36 “wet” shelter beds in Toronto, located at Seaton House’s Annex centre. These beds are always filled leaving many in the city without a place to go because of their addictions. The man found inside a truck in the city’s west end was known to shelters and police. He had been turned away from shelters in the past because of intoxication. Instead of going to a shelter he ventured into the truck Monday night. It is not known at this time what the cause of his death was but the -10c temperatures may well have played a factor.

In the city’s center a man in his 40s laid down on a TTC bench at Yonge and Dundas Square. He was found by a police officer Tuesday morning at around 5:30 a.m. without vital signs. The officer drove the ambulance to hospital while paramedics tried to revive him but he was pronounced dead at St. Michael’s Hospital. He was wearing a t-shirt, jeans and a hospital bracelet. No coat protected him from the -19C windchill temperatures and because the actual temperature had not fallen below -15c warming centres no extra shelter beds were available. The man, whose name has not been released, was known to the area. His actual cause of death is yet to be determined but media reports say that he suffered from cardiac arrest and hypothermia.

The fact that the man was wearing a hospital bracelet is concerning leading to questions on if he had been treated and released or if he had even been seen. For those who work with the homeless the fact he had a hospital bracelet on is just one clue as to his last hours.

One man who works with homeless men said Tuesday during a phone interview that he was “very concerned” about this death. “In the city’s emergency departments the staff are understaffed and overworked. Staff, mostly security, tell the homeless waiting to be seen to move on all the time.”

Another woman who cares for the homeless said that just because the man had a hospital bracelet on doesn’t mean he was seen. “I see clients all the time who have a bracelet on telling me that they bailed because of the long wait. Patients who are mentally ill are more apt to leave the safety of an emergency department than others. This happens all the time.”

Volunteers who were working with the homeless last night saw many without proper attire for the extreme conditions. One woman from Ve’ahavta gave out 15 coats during the early morning hours alone. Toronto only has three agencies that have vans for homeless outreach, two of which are from charities. Ve’ahavta and the Salvation Army are both volunteer programs that help the homeless while Toronto’s Streets to Homes runs the only city operated homeless outreach van service. When temperatures are at dangerous levels more vans go out but they can not cover the entire city each night.

Mayor John Tory responded to news of the two deaths with opening two warming centers for the homeless Tuesday afternoon. It is not clear if the city will be opening up more shelter beds tonight, even with temperatures predicted to be below -15c. As of last year Toronto Public Health has the authority to declare cold weather alerts for the city. Even though wind chill temperatures are to be factored in those alerts there was no call for an alert Tuesday. A statement released Tuesday afternoon says an alert may be called on Wednesday:

Toronto Public Health has been closely monitoring the evolving Environment Canada forecast for Toronto. The current forecast indicates that the criteria for a City of Toronto extreme cold weather alert will be in place tomorrow, January 7.

Low temperatures are expected very early tomorrow morning, reaching -15 C by 9 a.m. City of Toronto and community services which respond to extreme cold weather alerts will initiate services in time to support vulnerable individuals.

Written By

You may also like:

World

Calling for urgent action is the international medical humanitarian organization Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF)

World

Immigration is a symptom of a much deeper worldwide problem.

Business

Saudi Aramco President & CEO Amin Nasser speaks during the CERAWeek oil summit in Houston, Texas - Copyright AFP Mark FelixPointing to the still...

Business

A recent article in the Wall Street Journal infers that some workers might be falling out of the job market altogether.