Sweltering temperatures lead Windsor's Downtown Mission to request bottled water donations
Someone donated water during the last heat wave, but the Mission has run out again, ED says
As Windsorites endure another week of sweltering temperatures, some of the city's unhoused people have had to do without one method of cooling down.
The Downtown Mission of Windsor has run out of bottled water, said Executive Director Rukshini Ponniah-Goulin.
It's asking for donations of either bottled water or money with which to buy it.
"We see probably 300 and 400 adults at the Mission daily," she said.
"And at the Windsor Youth Centre we're seeing probably between 60 and 80 young people stopping in for different services there each evening. So you know, it's a lot, but … anything people can do will help."
Temperatures in Windsor reached 34.4 C on Thursday and are expected to reach the high 20s and low 30s for much of the next five days, according to Environment and Climate Change Canada.
Extremely hot days are almost as dangerous for unhoused people as extremely cold ones, Ponniah-Goulin said.
"We are definitely seeing more people coming to the mission during the day or at night right now because of the extreme heat," she said.
"People want to stay inside however long they can just to get out of that heat."
Someone donated a large number of water bottles to the Mission during the last heat wave, but those have all been used up now, Ponniah-Goulin said.
The facility would also welcome donations of other beverages people might have available, such as juice boxes, she said.