With the deep-freeze now upon us, shelter operators in Kamloops are preparing to make as much space available for those on the streets who need to get away from the dangerous weather.

As it stands now, there are 240 emergency shelter spaces available for those in need across the city, with the main ones being the Alliance Church and the Yacht Club.

The City of Kamloops’ Social, Housing and Community Development Manager Carmin Mazzotta notes there are other locations for people to find respite from the cold.

“There’s the ICS Youth Shelter. The Y Women’s Emergency Shelter has some spaces,” said Mazzotta.  “Then there’s spaces that can expand within the existing shelter and social housing system.”

He notes the City works with existing shelter operators to find as much space as possible.

“The Stuart Wood site does have the ability to expand a little bit as necessary,” noted Mazzotta.  “Some of the other sites have been able to expand a little bit during those really cold temperatures.”

Mazzotta also notes the Envision Shuttle program run by Canadian Mental Health has been activated, travelling around the city to look for folks who might be in need of shelter and transport them to a warm place.

Temperatures in Kamloops aren’t expected to climb above -10 C until mid-week next week.