Rising concerns after warming shelter opens near homeless camp in Wetaskiwin
Global News
`They lost their counsellors, nurses, addictions therapists, doctors and it was replaced with a mat on the floor.''
A tent lies mangled on a pile of soot where a fire burned down part of a homeless encampment in a central Alberta city.
Marsha Louis, who lives in one of the remaining tents held up by shards of wood and covered in tarps, says the only item that survived the fire was a ceramic angel.
The winged ornament sits on top of wooden crates that act as a wind barrier. Louis calls it their guardian angel.
“It looks over us.”
As the sun disappears beyond the horizon on a cold December night, Louis says it’s a struggle to keep warm in Wetaskiwin‘s “tent city.” Freezing rain has also turned the area into an ice rink.
About 25 people currently live at the camp in Wetaskiwin, southeast of Edmonton.
Across a snow-covered field to the camp’s northeast, a warming shelter recently opened. Temporary trailers sleep up to 25. While some are using the new space, others like Louis are choosing to stay in the camp.
“They told us to go over there, but my friend’s in a wheelchair and my common-law (partner) can’t really walk. They have no ramp for a wheelchair,” says Louis.
