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B.C. Government Caucus
News Release
November 6, 2015
Extreme weather shelter spaces available across Abbotsford
ABBOTSFORD – The B.C. government is funding 30 extreme weather shelter spaces in Abbotsford this winter to help people whose health and safety may be threatened by cold, wet weather.
The temporary spaces will be available from now until March 31, 2016 as Abbotsford issues extreme weather alerts.
“Each year, we work with the organizations in our community to ensure we have adequate shelter space available to provide an extra layer of support during the cold and wet winter days,” Abbotsford South MLA Darryl Plecas said.
Temporary shelters will be located at:
- 10 spaces at Cyrus Centre, 2616 Ware Street
- 10 spaces at Centre of Hope, 34081 Gladys Road
- 10 spaces at Abbotsford Community Services, 33780 Laurel Street
Each community decides what weather conditions warrant an alert and how many spaces to activate on a given night, depending on the capacity of existing shelters and the estimated need.
Throughout British Columbia, close to 1,200 temporary emergency shelter spaces will be available this winter in about 100 communities.
The provincial government also funds outreach teams to help connect people with a range of services such as housing, health care and community supports. Last year, more than 7,200 people in B.C. were connected to housing, income assistance and a range of support services by provincially funded homeless outreach and shelter workers.
A list of permanent shelter spaces is available at: www.bchousing.org/Options/Emergency_Housing/ESP.
To receive notifications on when communities are issuing Extreme Weather Alerts, follow BC Housing on Twitter: @BC_Housing
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Media Contact: Ashley Stewart, B.C. Government Caucus Communications, 250-387-8589