A cooling centre at the Sandman Centre at 300 Lorne Street in Kamloops is empty.

(SHANNON AINSLIE / iNFOnews.ca)

A cooling centre in downtown Kamloops was empty in the early afternoon on a blazing hot day earlier this week. 

The cooling centre at Sandman Centre opened on Sunday, July 14, to provide respite to the public, including the homeless community and seniors without adequate air conditioning, but at 1:25 p.m. the following day, only two workers were inside.

The space is large and cool and two Mustard Seed staff members were ready to hand out cold drinks and snacks while outdoor temperatures hovered around 37 Celsius. 

iNFOnews.ca stopped by to see how the newly opened centre was operating and find out first hand what other strategies the homeless community is using to survive the extreme heat. 

While the employees would not disclose their names, they said only 20 people took advantage of the centre the first day it opened, and that users didn’t stay for very long before taking snacks and returning to the river nearby to cool off.

The employees speculated people didn’t know about the centre and they were keeping the front door wide open to make it more obvious, along with creating posters to put up around town.

After roughly ten minutes, one couple came in to sit at the centre but declined an interview.

Homeless man Kevin -11 stays cool in the shade at Riverside Park in downtown Kamloops.

(SHANNON AINSLIE / iNFOnews.ca)

Across the street in the busy Riverside Park, a homeless man who goes by the street name Kevin-11 was sitting on a park bench in the shade. He said he doesn’t use cooling centres and didn’t know one was open.

“I’m from Vancouver where I worked as a framer for decades in all kinds of weather,” he said. “I don’t mind the heat, I love it here.”

Riverside Park is a popular place in the summer. Located on the Thompson River, it has a public beach for swimming, a water park and is largely shaded by big deciduous trees.

The weathered 64-year-old stays overnight at the Stuart Wood shelter downtown and walks to the shady park in the mornings to stay cool for the day.

“I’m fine, I have heat tolerance, I don’t need anything and don’t cause any trouble,” he said. 

Three homeless men in Kamloops cool off in the shade at Riverside Park. From left to right: Kevin-11, Simon Says, Josh Wonderboy.

(SHANNON AINSLIE / iNFOnews.ca)

A pair of young homeless men who go by the names Simon Says and Josh Wonderboy joined the conversation after stopping at the cooling centre for the first time. They carried backpacks and water bottles. 

“We didn’t know it was open,” Josh said. “We knew one was open on the North Shore but it’s way too far to walk to in this heat. I’ve been going to the river to keep cool every day.”

Simon said he too has been finding shady spots to sit at along the river during the hottest parts of the day.

“I’ve also been cooling off at the public library downtown and at the Mustard Seed shelter,” he said.

Now they know the downtown cooling centre is open, and within walking distance to where they hang out, they both said they will use it more often. 

On July 5, Environment Canada issued a heat warning for the Okanagan, South and North Thompson, Nicola, Similkameen, Shuswap and Boundary region and it has been continued everyday since.

The Sandman Centre arena concourse located downtown was chosen by the city as the dedicated cooling centre but it was initially booked up for a week as temperatures approached 40 Celsius. The McArthur Island Sport and Event Centre on the North Shore operated as a cooling centre from July 9 to July 13 to help fill the gap.

Community Service Officers and caring individuals in the community have been out offering bottled water and access to supports and resources.

Amanda McIntosh is a mental health and substance use worker who has been volunteering time around her work schedule to treat those with heat-related injuries and transport them to cooling centres.

“I’m seeing weakness, lethargy and dehydration in our vulnerable population,” she said in a previous interview with iNFOnews.ca. “Many were pale, one was vomiting and another said she couldn’t see properly.”

McIntosh said cooling centres are a vital resource in heat waves and a lot of people in need are not aware they are open or are too far away to walk to one.

The Loop resource centre on the North Shore opened as a cooling centre on July 5 and is operating from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. That same day ASK Wellness Centre on the North Shore opened its doors as a place to cool down during operating hours with water, Gatorade and a misting hose.

The Sandman Centre cooling centre will run from 12 p.m. to 8 p.m. daily until the heat warning by Environment Canada is over.

The weather forecast for Kamloops shows daytime highs at 39 C and 40 C for the next week, with average overnight lows at 18 C. The Okanagan forecast calls for daytime highs between 37 C and 39 C with average overnight lows at 18 C.

To contact a reporter for this story, email Shannon Ainslie or call 250-819-6089 or email the editor. You can also submit photos, videos or news tips to the newsroom and be entered to win a monthly prize draw.

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