The Pas man rescues senior found lying outside in the cold, waiting for shelter to open

A man from The Pas, who was shocked to find a senior waiting outside a shelter in 32 C weather, is rallying for volunteers to keep the local shelter open 24 hours a day.

Alexander McKay was driving past the Oscar's Place homeless shelter on Sunday night at around 5 p.m. when he noticed a senior lying on the snow outside its doors. The senior had a walker next to him.

"I said, are you OK? And I talked to him," said McKay. "It's like he couldn't really talk as he was having a frostbite in the lips and his cheeks."

McKay said he offered to call the police and ambulance, but the man declined.

He then drove back to his house to grab his ice-fishing tent and gear. He returned to set the tent up for the man whom he later identified as Allen Cook and brought along a blanket, some chairs and propane heaters.

McKay said after everything was set up, he helped Cook into the tent.

"He was so happy that he went in there and he was warmed up and we stayed here till the homeless centrewas open," McKay said.

Shelter only open at night

McKay said Cook was waiting for the shelter to open at 8 p.m. to find a bed to sleep for the night. Typicallythe shelter, which has approximately 20 beds, would only house people until the morning at around 8 a.m. but it shouldn't be this way, he said.

With the frigid temperatures, McKay says people who are homeless should have a place to stay during the day.

McKay spoke to the shelter's manager and was able to convince Oscar's Place to keep the shelter open for 24 hours until Tuesday.He said he was told it was a staffing and funding issue.

In a statement to CBC, a spokesperson with Manitoba Housing, which operates the shelter,said the pandemic has introduced new challenges because restrictions have left fewer options for the homeless to find warming places.

"The province has made every effort to maintain operations at Oscar's Place, including deploying staff from the Manitoba Families to work at the shelter. However, staffing remains a challenge," the email from the spokesperson reads.

"We continue to explore options to address these issues, and would welcome the assistance of other partners in providing daytime programming."

Meanwhile, McKay is calling out for volunteers and gathering them together. He hopes the help they can provide will keep the shelter running in the daytime.

"Help these homeless people not get frostbite and frozen feet, get them cleaned up, get them well fed, you know, get them warm, that's what we all see here," he said.

"We need some teamwork here and respect and love and each other, help each other," McKay said.

As for Cook, McKay said he slept at the shelter on Sunday night. But on Monday afternoon, he wandered outside again and then returned to the ice-fishing tent.

"I'm so happy that I rescued him," said McKay. "He was so happy after that, he did not want to get out of that tent."

Homeless senior rescued after laying outside in -32 weather

4 years ago

Duration 2:17

Alexander McKay saw senior Allen Cook laying outside Oscar's Place homeless shelter in The Pas, Man. on Sunday. McKay decided to set up a tent to help Cook brave the -32 weather as he waited for the shelter to open.