The City of Lethbridge is working with Streets Alive Mission to operate temporary warming centres on City Transit buses. (Photo: File photo)

By Sarah Jones

Lethbridge Transit buses to be used as temporary warming centre

Feb 22, 2023 | 3:27 PM

LETHBRIDGE, AB – A blast of cold weather has vulnerable populations in Lethbridge seeking shelter from the wind and snow.

Last month, the Streets Alive Mission, in partnership with the City of Lethbridge, closed its temporary 24-hour warming centre as the city saw above-average seasonal temperatures.

Read more: Streets Alive Mission temporarily suspends 24-hour warming center, looking for new location

The warming centre was an interim solution to help people escape the cold, but Streets Alive Mission Director of Fund Development Jennifer Lepko says the location was never ideal.

Since the closure, the city, along with Streets Alive Mission has used the past several weeks to search for a more suitable site.

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Yet, with the recent cold snap and no signs of locating a permanent location, the City is providing the Streets Alive Outreach Teams with Lethbridge Transit buses to operate temporary warming centers.

That means that when the temperature is below minus 10, the Outreach Team will staff two buses that are parked across from the Lethbridge Shelter and Stabilization Centre, should it reach capacity during the cold weather.

From 8:00 p.m. to 8:00 a.m., individuals are welcome to come sit on the bus and warm up for a moment while Outreach Team members provide support.

The buses have been stationed outside of the shelter since February 20, 2023, and are projected to run until February 25, but Streets Alive says it will monitor the changing weather conditions.

The city indicated that while shelter space is limited, this arrangement is a temporary measure as more permanent solutions are being explored.

In November 2022, the City of Lethbridge approached Streets Alive Mission to create a short-term plan for a warming centre, in which Streets Alive would operate over the winter months from December 1, 2022, to March 31, 2023.

Read more: Streets Alive to provide 24-hour warming shelter in Lethbridge

While Streets Alive Mission closed its temporary warming centre on January 4, they began outreach work five days later.

Since then, they have been providing 24-hour outreach services on the street, with teams going out to provide wellness checks and emergency transportation, offering coffee and hot chocolate, and passing out hand and foot warmers and hygiene packs.

In January alone, Streets Alive Mission says it had over 5,500 interactions with people, gave out 494 referrals for housing and treatment, attended 222 encampments, prevented eight overdoses, and transported eight people to detox.

Lepko says that their Outreach Teams are seeing even greater success in getting people into recovery in February.

Read more at LethbridgeNewsNow.com