Winnipegger with nowhere to stay warm during blast of extreme cold develops frostbite

A Winnipeg man who wasn't able to escape the extreme cold over the weekend developed severe frostbite in both feet.

Robert, whose last name CBC is not revealing to protect his privacy, said he couldn't think of a shelter on Friday night that wouldtake him in after he consumed drugs.

He said his meth-drivenpsychosis kept him seated in the inadequate confines of a porta-potty for hours.

His feet were aching, but it wasn't the sole reason Robert, who's been homeless since November, was desperate for a hospital.

"My feet are already in bad shape, because I spend so much time walking around, but it wasn't medical care I was seeking, it was warmth," Robert said on Sunday. By then he was staying at the new city-owned warming shelter in the St. Vital neighbourhood.

On Friday night, he walked several kilometres from the DisraeliBridge area to St. Boniface Hospital, where his frostbite was treated.

Discharged from hospital after 1 night

The doctor working the overnight shift figuredRobert should remain in the hospital's care for a few days, worried his frostbite would worsen if exposed to the elementsagain,but Robertsaid the doctor arriving for the day shift had a different assessment.

By Saturday morning, Robert was back walking on the street.

"With frostbittenfeet thatreally justneeds some rest and warmth, there wasn't a safe place for me to go," he said.

Robert went to thenew warming shelterat604 St. Mary's Rd., which has capacity for 20 people. It opened following the death of a woman at a bus shelter in December.

The St. Vital shelter only opens on an as-needed basis, when temperatures are frigid.

The coldest nights are when finding a shelter is most challenging, Robert said.

"If you're not there before sundown, you can't count on a bed."

He doesn't like that people without homes can bepushed back outside in the morning.

"If I'm backout in the cold, I'm even more likely to re-engage in the substance use, because then at least I'm not fully conscious of how terrible the situation is."

He's been homeless since November, when he relapsed into methamphetamine use.

Robert would like to see more resources for people experiencing homeless spread throughout the city.

"I don't think concentrating all our resources" in onearea, which he calls the "Main Street strip," is appropriate, Robert said.

"It's apressure cooker, and you're constantly worrying about somebody antagonizing you maybe for no apparent reason, or your stuff being stolen."

For example, his glasses were stolen at onedowntown shelter, he said.

Marion Willis with St. Boniface Street Links, seated in the St. Vital shelter her organization runs, doesn't have to look far to find other peoplesuffering from frostbite.

"There's a fellow in the corner over there with his leg and feet bandaged. He's on crutches," she said. "We'vehad another fellow come to us, his whole hand is just one huge blood blister."

It "speaks to the state of homelessness in the city and just how unprepared we reallyare."

The need for warming spaces increases during periods of acute cold.

"This year is the first time there's ever been a shelter opportunity this side of the river for people struggling with homelessness," Willis said, referring to their location east of the Red River.

"I could put double the beds in thisshelter, and we would be full every night, and that's just with people on thisside of the river."

Dangerous cold weather for people without shelter

2 years ago

Duration 2:20

A Winnipeg man who got frostbite in the extreme cold is recovering at a warming shelter. People without a home have been seeking out safety wherever they can but there isn't always somewhere to go. It's a problem that becomes more complex when someone's living with addiction.