Metro Vancouver’s shelters doing what they can to help during freezing cold

As a massive snowstorm hit B.C.’s South Coast this week, and plummeting temperatures has the region shivering into the holidays, Metro Vancouver’s shelters are doing everything they can to make sure everyone who needs a place to stay has warm food and a bed to sleep in.

Officials with the Union Gospel Mission say they’re doing what they can to make space for everyone who needs a place to stay during this blast of snow and snowy weather.

UGM’s Nicole Mucci says more warming centres and emergency shelters have opened over the last few days, to help cope with what could be unprecedented demand.

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“For people who are unhoused right now and who are struggling with homelessness and living in encampments, we are seeing more of that in Metro Vancouver than I would say probably ever before,” she told CityNews.

On average, Mucci says UGM turns away about six people a night, and that’s before the snow and cold hit the region.

“It’s a helpful temporary aid in making sure that there are other spaces for people to stay safe during this weather,” she said of the temporary emergency shelters.

For those living in tents or without any shelter, Mucci says there are even greater risks, ranging from hypothermia or frostbite to using candles or heaters inside tents.

She says while no one was turned away from the mission’s 92-bed shelter Monday night as about 25 centimetres of snow began to blanket the region, on most nights, the only option is to hand out warm clothing or sleeping bags once the shelter reaches capacity.

The mission estimates more than 3,600 people across Metro Vancouver are homeless and many more live in precarious housing such as single rooms in rundown hotels.

–With files from Greg Bowman