Homeless face challenges during heat wave

LETHBRIDGE HERALD
Local Journalism Initiative
Mon, July 24, 2023

Current local heat warnings reaching 32 degrees and higher for daytime temperatures poses a challenge for individuals who are experiencing homelessness and have no means to keep cool from the raging heat.

Sage Clan team lead Josh Cummins shared the challenges and hardships the homeless go through and especially with a heat wave.

“First off, it's like, just the reality of downtown Lethbridge with the homeless and addicted. It's a very hard reality, no matter what the weather is. But with the heat wave coming up, I think what we were always looking for is that heatstroke overdoses.

The numbers have risen during heat waves and cold spells, so we're always looking out for that sort of thing. It's tough out there. When it's hot, for sure, there's not a lot of places to go to get away from the heat. So, we're nervous. We're hoping everyone makes it through,” said Cummins.

Cummins said Sage Clan prepares for extreme temperatures by varius means including stocking up with bottled water and wet cloths to help cool down those with heatstroke. He advises those with water or cold items to spare can help by giving them to homeless individuals.

“It's always good to check in on people. If you have water, give it to them. If you have something cold, give it to them for sure.”

Sage Clan is not the only organization preparing for the heat warning as Streets Alive is also preparing.

Cameron Kissick, Streets Alive chief operations officer, expressed resources the City has for emergencies to keep some of the homeless out of the heat.

“The City has an emergency response when it comes to things like these. So, there are locations that are open as cooling stations, or cooling locations that community members can access to cool off, get inside, get out of the heat for a bit. So, accessing those are all really important,” said Kissick.

“Of course, outreach teams are out . . . checking on people, making sure they're hydrated, makeing sure they're staying cool as they can.”

Cummins bottled water donations have an impact during extreme heat temperatures and notes the places accepting water donations.

“Sage Clan always accept available donations. You can get ahold of us on our social media pages. Food banks, there's a whole lot of resources out there that could use water.”

Water donations for Streets Alive can be delivered to 323 4 St South.

A local woman who is experiencing homelessness shared the difficulty it can be to find shelter during extreme heat temperatures and the difficulty of being accepted by the community. She said some homeless individuals don’t have the support to overcome their battle with addiction.

“They can just say, ‘oh, yeah, well, you know, I can quit,’ but go home to their families and have all the love and support they got. But some of us don't have that. Some of us just have each other's,” she said.

She described the trouble of judgment homeless individuals face on a daily basis and how many of them are in the process of trying to get their lives together.

“We're not even allowed to do pretty much anything. And if we do get, you know, taken care, we get in trouble, and they constantly call, and they automatically assume that we're just using drugs or whatever. They're painting us pretty much with all the same brush. And what they don't understand is most of us are just trying to get our own place so that we can get our life back together. We're trying to get it together.”

Steffanie Costigan, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Lethbridge Herald