Fire officials are allowing a Windsor homeless centre to temporarily act as a shelter, after initially ordering its occupants out of the building over safety concerns.
On Friday evening, the Windsor Fire and Rescue Service attended the Street Help Homeless Centre on Wyandotte St. E, which had been allowing around 15 people to spend the night and escape the cold weather. Fire officials informed the occupants that because the centre is not licensed as shelter, there can be no overnight sleeping at that location. The infraction could have left the centre facing a fine of around $50,000.
Fire officials contacted the three other shelters in the city to find accommodations for those at Street Help, however, Chief Fire Prevention Officer John Lee says the occupants refused to leave.
"There was space [at the other locations and] we offered transportation for them to get to the shelters," he says. "The intent was never to put anybody out on the street. We wanted to ensure their safety."
Windsor-Essex is currently under an extreme cold warning, with temperatures expected to drop overnight Friday to around -30 C to -35 C.
Since the initial order was delivered to the shelter, fire officials have come to an agreement with Street Help to allow them to operate as a shelter Friday night and over the weekend.
"The order was not rescinded. We have come to a resolution, temporarily, where we are going to allow them to operate on a limited basis," says Lee.
Lee says fire crews have since provided some training to the centre's volunteer staff in the event a fire or other incident were to occur.
"They can't lock it down, people need to be able to evacuate," he says. "We've trained them on procedures for exiting the building, what to do when the alarm sounds, where to go, how to maintain a log and those sorts of things the other lodging homes and shelters all have."
In a post on Facebook, MP Lisa Gretzky says she has been in contact with the Windsor fire department since the issue came to her attention Friday evening.
"What I ask of anyone following the social media posts is that you don’t jump to conclusions and judge Windsor Fire or anyone that works for the city until all information is shared. No one that relies on Street Help for shelter will be left to stay out in the cold," she says. "Street Help provides an invaluable service to some of our most vulnerable citizens and Windsor Fire [and Rescue] will work with them to ensure all issues are addressed."
Lee said the Windsor fire department is hopeful it will be able to work with Street Help to ensure it is equipped to house those in need.
"On Monday, hopefully, we'll be able to meet with the owner and take steps to make it a process where we can remediate what's going on and that proper procedures and licencing and all those sorts of things are in place, so they can operate," he says.
