Winnipeg's emergency services system leaves vulnerable people at risk, says outreach group
'I thank God all the time that we're out there … we've saved lives': Melissa Robinson
A Winnipeg outreach organization is questioning the city's emergency services system after a young woman was left waiting for an ambulance for three hours while experiencing a mental-health crisis on Saturday in the North End.
In a statement posted to Facebook, Morgan's Warriors said group members encountered the woman, who was barefoot, limping and appeared to be in a state of psychosis, near Selkirk Avenue and Salter Street around 10:30 p.m.
She had been reported to the group as missing from a First Nation in northeastern Manitoba last fall but was much thinner than the photo members had.
Once they realized who it was, and learned the woman had a history of mental health issues and missing person reports, members called 911.
A Winnipeg Fire Paramedic Service truck arrived within minutes but the distressed woman began to wander away and the first responders never followed, according to the outreach group.
The WFPS, in a statement to CBC News on Tuesday, said staff provides an "observational assessment" if a person flees from their crews.
"If individuals decline assistance they must be competent and understand the risks associated with refusing assistance," the statement said.
WFPS said crews typically call police if they believe a person is a danger to themselves or others.
Members of Morgan's Warriors said they called 911 three more times after first responders left, until police showed up 30 minutes later.
George Robinson, a search lead with the group that was at the scene on Saturday night, said members were "completely disregarded" once police arrived.
"We had the feeling that we weren't wanted there. But we knew if we left, they would leave," he said.
It was three hours before the ambulance arrived and the woman, who had been sitting agitated in the grass with police nearby, was taken to hospital around 1:30 a.m. Sunday.
"I thank God all the time that we're out there. We're in places where [first responders] can't be and we've saved lives," said Morgan's Warriors founder Melissa Robinson, but "we just don't have enough people on the streets."
Both Melissa and George Robinson said they would like to see communication between police, firefighters, paramedics and community services change, especially when it comes to missing persons cases.
Despite her history of missing person reports, the woman had not been listed with the Winnipeg Police Service as missing at the time officers responded Saturday, the WPS told CBC News in an email Tuesday.
Officers contacted the woman's family before she was transported to hospital, the WPS said.
Melissa Robinson said that many families of missing Indigenous women have lost faith in the police and look elsewhere for help. Morgan's Warriors posts missing persons reports to their website on behalf of families looking for their loved ones.
"Not everything that we post has an incident number, missing persons file number. We do it because family reaches out to us and because the police are of no help. The police won't file a report, and we hear that so often," she said.
"You have families that don't even want to reach out to the police for assistance because they're not taking them seriously."
George Robinson said the outreach group doesn't know where the woman is now, or if she's safe.
The WFPS said it could not comment on its response as medical calls are covered under the confidentiality of the Personal Health Information Act.
"We're still looking for her, still looking out for her. We won't give up, even if she did leave the hospital," George Robinson said.
"We're still going to be working to get her home."
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With files from Mike Arsenault