Red Cross transforms a community centre into an emergency shelter

The COVID-19 pandemic is a year into its grip on the world, and everyone has been affected in one way or another. Some have fared better than others, but for many, the pandemic has hit their community much harder. In Windsor, those experiencing homelessness have been disproportionately affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

When the primary homeless shelter in Windsor was forced to temporarily close, the city of Windsor realized they needed an alternate plan, and fast.  They identified the Aquatic Centre in downtown Windsor as the most appropriate site for a temporary shelter.

While a congregate shelter in a community centre is difficult to do at the best of times, the global pandemic threw a whole host of new challenges at it, including how to manage social distancing in a confined living space. This is when the City of Windsor contacted the Canadian Red Cross to provide assistance.

The Red Cross sent in a team representing Ontario’s Emergency Management, Mental Health and Psychosocial Support, and a Health Advisor from our International Operations Team. Working with the City of Windsor, the team was able to provide an assessment of the overall layout of the facility, considering best practices around health and risk. The team considered requirements for physical distancing, including setting up barriers between cots, and helped establish zoning for the donning and doffing of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) in and out of established zones. 

In only a few days, the Aquatic Centre transformed from a community centre to a temporary congregate emergency shelter with Epidemic Prevention Controls (EPC) firmly in place, a first in Ontario for the Red Cross since the pandemic started.  With the setup complete, the Red Cross team moved on to other responses throughout the province and the City of Windsor opened the centre to help manage the influx of homeless who have recovered from COVID-19.

As the last year has shown us, the strength of the Red Cross is in its ability to leverage knowledge from various teams, work collaboratively, and solve problems during times of uncertainty....all to fulfill our humanitarian imperative to help those in need.