Cold Snap Comes To An End
Posted January 17, 2007 12:00 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
It was another chilly start to the day in the GTA.
The city began Wednesday under an Extreme Cold Weather Alert following a frigid 24 hours downtown. The alert was called off mid-morning after temperatures began to rise.
Thursday could see the mercury go above zero, but it’ll dip down again below the freezing mark this weekend.
There haven’t been many days of extreme cold so far this season but when there is a risk of chill-related health problems city officials keep a watchful eye on those living on the streets.
“Usually we see cold weather alerts starting in late fall, early winter, so it’s really late this year,” says Elaine Smyer of the City.
“People are out in milder weather in winter and they don’t think the cold weather’s coming. When it hits they may not be prepared so they could suffer frostbite or hypothermia and worse, they could fall asleep and it could result in death.”
Any time a cold weather warning is issued, when temperatures fall below -15C without the wind chill, more shelter beds are opened up and additional resources are allocated to helping those most in need.
Anyone who sees someone in need can call the Street Helpline at 1-866-392-3777.
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