CBC reporter finds Somali asylum seeker who says he walked 21 hours into Manitoba

A man from Somalia who risked the freezing temperatures of Manitoba as he crossed into Canada was discovered out in the cold by a CBC journalist.

The chance encounter took place around 4:30 a.m. Saturday as Nick Purdon was driving along the U.S.-Canada border, on assignment to watch for possible asylum seekers, while the temperature dipped to –17 C.

He spotted the man crouched near a snowbank along the side of the road near Emerson, Man., in an area where several other Somali asylum-seekers have made the trek out of the U.S. since U.S. President Donald Trump took office in late January.

"I have a problem. America is [the] problem now," said the man, adding that he had been walking for 21 hours and was "not feeling well."

• Read more coverage of asylum seekers
• 'Don't put your life at risk,' U.S. Somali leaders warn

Shortly after getting into the journalist's car to get warm, an RCMP officer arrived and told the man he would be given medical care.

Crossing into Canada

8 years ago

Duration 10:59

The influx of refuge seekers into Manitoba has been well-documented. Here's a look at one man who risked freezing temperatures and U.S. border security in order to come into Canada

For more on this story, click on the video above.

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