Man found dead in Winnipeg camp struggled with addiction, mental health, outreach worker says

A man who was found dead in a temporary encampment in Winnipeg this week struggled with addiction and homelessness but desperately wanted to find somewhere to live, according to the director of an outreach organization that worked with him.

Marion Willis said staff at St. Boniface Street Links were in almost daily contact with Alex Arnason from May of this year right up until a few weeks ago, when they last saw him sleeping in a bus shelter outside a mall.

"We are all deeply saddened that it turns out that it was actually Alex in that tent," Willis said.

"Like many of us, he struggled with poor mental health, he struggled with addiction, and that caused him to be homeless. And I think that as a city, as a society, as a country, we need to do far better."

Emergency crews were called to Joe Zuken Heritage Park in Winnipeg's North Point Douglas area Monday afternoon, following reports of two people in cardiac arrest at an encampment. By the time crews arrived, both were dead.

Willis confirmed to CBC that Arnason was one of those people.

A tent was still in the park the next day, with a propane tank and gas-powered heater on the ground next to it. 

Manitoba's chief medical examiner's office is leading the investigation into the deaths. A representative said earlier this week a cause of death — which is private medical information — will not be released publicly.

Officials did not respond to a question on Friday about whether both victims have been identified.

Willis said Arnason was also known as Keith Wallace, and had told staff at Street Links he was in the process of legally changing his name. According to the organization's records, Arnason was in his 30s.

She said the last time Street Links staff saw him, he asked about when the organization's 24/7 shelter space on St. Mary's Road would be open — something he'd asked about before.

The site is scheduled to open next week, said Willis — about a week and a half after Arnason's death.

"I have to think that, and wonder if we had been able to open a lot sooner, maybe Alex would still be with us today."

Willis said Arnason was deep into methamphetamine addiction and struggled with mental health issues that caused him to experience psychosis.