Up to 30 people are taking refuge from the blowing snow at the emergency winter warming centre in the basement of St. Matthew's Church on Barrington Street in Halifax.

The centre opens during extreme weather events and when temperatures dip below –15 C. Today, the centre opened its doors for the tenth time this year.

Ken Meldrum showed up to "lend a smile" today. (Nic Meloney/CBC)

"I came to lend a smile," says Ken Meldrum, a regular volunteer at the centre. "I had cabin fever, so I came down to shovel or salt, or giggle or laugh."

Meldrum said he comes to spend time with disadvantaged people who don't have "a luxury space or family" to wait out the storm with. Meldum said he knew the centre would need an extra hand today, so walked to the centre this morning and has been drying guests' boots and mittens on a boot-dryer.

Co-ordinator Eric Jonsson says warming centres are necessary for survival during extreme winter weather. (Rob Short/CBC )

Centre co-ordinator Eric Jonsson said on days when most of the city is shut down, the warming centre is a necessity for Halifax's homeless population.

"There's some food, coffee and hot drinks, a place to get out of the elements," he said. "It's mostly just a place so people don't die outside."

Jonsson said the centre is a community effort. A team of organizations, such as Phoenix Youth Programs and Shelter Nova Scotia, are contributing funds to keep the centre open during extreme weather. He said the centre was serving coffee and donated casseroles today, and that the volunteers try to do whatever they can for guests.

Blowing snow shut down most of downtown Halifax. (Rob Short/CBC)

Jonsson said that if the centre wasn't open, the people there would be in ATM areas at banks, or huddling in the overhangs along Spring Garden road. With today's high winds, they could be in real danger, he said.

"With blowing snow like this, I don't know what they would do," Jonsson said. "I've always been amazed at how people ... can figure out how to survive in ways that I think a lot of us would never even consider."

The warming centre is open in the same space as Out of the Cold, an overnight program that offers cots for sleeping, and is handled by different staff.

Jonsson said the centre will be open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. as long as the extreme weather and temperatures persist.

If people haven't left by 8 p.m., Jonsson said they usually try to get a cot, but there's only so many.

A shelter co-ordinator says if people don't get a bed, they're allowed to stay for the night or until the severe weather passes.