A homeless man sleeps under an emergency blanket on Dundas St. as pedestrians brave the cold at Dundas Square, Toronto. (Bernard Weil/Toronto Star via Getty Images)

Canadians are feeling the deep freeze this winter, trying to stay inside and keep warm, but no one is feeling the pressure more than homeless shelters during this cold spell.

With occupancy consistently reaching or exceeding 100 per cent, shelters are trying to keep up with the need to get people off the streets as we wait for some relief from these frigid temperatures.

“People who may not have gone to a shelter are now, they just can’t survive,” said Jane Truemner, director of communications and capital fundraising with Fred Victor, a charitable organization that operates several shelter, affordable and transitional housing locations in Toronto, told Yahoo Canada News.

View photos A homeless advocate gestures to Mayor John Tory after he made a motion to delay the discussion on the homeless issue and to open the Armouries. (Bernard Weil/Toronto Star via Getty Images) More

Toronto’s emergency shelters

In Toronto in particular, shelters and the city officials have been dealing with the crisis of trying to open winter respite sites as quickly as possible.

“It’s the level of care that we can give, you don’t want people sitting on the floor, it’s a tough one for us,” Truemner said. ”As much as we run our programs and we fundraise…we’re mandated really by the money that we’re given per bed for people.”

On Wednesday, Mayor John Tory announced that he is looking into opening the Moss Park armoury for 24-hour winter respite for up to 100 beds until April 15. This follows significant criticism Tory faced for refusing to open armouries to the homeless when shelters initially approached capacity last year but has since received support from local city shelters.

“We support the request that the mayor has made,” said Bruce Rivers, the executive director at the Toronto-based, youth-focused shelter Covenant House. “I think that the Moss Park option is a very viable one, it makes sense, particularly given its location and the size.”

The Government of Canada has accepted the request from Toronto and Ontario to temporarily make the Moss Park Armoury available as a 24/7 respite centre for 2 weeks. We’re all working together to keep people safe from the cold. — Ralph Goodale (@RalphGoodale) January 5, 2018

On Friday, the federal government accepted the city’s request to open the Moss park armoury, which will be available seven days a week for two weeks.

According to Truemner, the shelter receives funding each year based on an estimation of occupancy and resources needed from years past. She identifies that when there’s a significant increase in individuals coming to shelters that was not previously predicted, the bed and resources required exceeds what is provided.

View photos A homeless person’s belongings are shown on a heated vent on a street in Montreal THE CANADIAN PRESS IMAGES/Graham Hughes More

Covenant House regularly reaches capacity by 2:00p.m. each day but more recently, the shelter has had to redirect 10 to 15 young people a day to other resources within the city. Covenant House works with the city officials and uses a computer database to find where bed availability exists within the city. They also have a drop-in centre where they see upwards of 100 youths who need a meal, shower, or require the assistance of a counselor or nurse.

“It’s cold out and nasty. We do everything that we can to hold on to the young person to make sure that we can get them to a place that’s safe and warm,” Rivers said.

Although he supports the city’s effort to open additional winter respite sites, Rivers does identify that a longterm solution in the city is imperative and needs to be established with federal, provincial and the municipal levels of government.

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