More warming centres to open, outreach staff on streets as bitter cold grips Toronto
Total of 7 warming centres will be open as of Tuesday evening, city says
More warming centres will open in Toronto on Tuesday and additional homelessness outreach workers will be on the streets as frigid temperatures continue to grip the city.
The two further warming facilities, set to open at 5 p.m., are located at:
- Cecil Community Centre, 58 Cecil St. (east of Spadina Avenue, south of College Street).
- Jimmie Simpson Recreation Centre, 870 Queen St. E. (East of Broadview Avenue, north of Queen Street).
Five other warming centres are already open at:
- 136 Spadina Rd. (south of Dupont Street).
- 81 Elizabeth St. (west of Bay Street, south of Dundas Street W.).
- 12 Holmes Ave. (off of Yonge Street, south of Finch Avenue E.).
- 885 Scarborough Golf Club Rd. (east of Markham Road, south of Ellesmere Road).
- Metro Hall, 55 John St. (north of Wellington Street W.).
Walk-ins are welcome, and if a warming centre is full, the city says it will arrange for transportation to another location.
Meanwhile, additional teams from Streets to Homes and other partner organizations will be on city streets, encouraging those living outdoors to go to a city-run facility during the cold snap.
"Outreach staff continue to hand out blankets, sleeping bags and warming clothing," the city said in a news release Tuesday.
The bitter cold is expected to stick around until at least the beginning of next week, according to Environment Canada. Daytime highs are forecast to hover around -5 C, though it will feel much colder with the wind chill.
Overnight temperatures are set to plunge to the negative mid-teens, with wind chill values down into the -20s.