Tents and tarps returning to Vancouver's Downtown Eastside as homeless shelters overwhelmed

Vancouver’s homeless shelters are unable to keep up with the number of people seeking shelter, even with temporary extreme weather facilities set up in the city, prompting some to shelter under tarps or to erect new tents.

CTV News saw more than a dozen camping tents or makeshift shelters with tarps within a two-block stretch of East Hastings late Saturday morning with only one city engineering truck clearing debris. A handful of Vancouver police officers were speaking with one camper but there were few others in the area. 

Union Gospel Mission has seen increasing demand for their shelter services, even with some extreme weather shelters open due to the cold and rainy conditions. 

“We had people sleeping in mats in our hallway last night and we did everything we could to keep as many people in here as we could, safely, but we still had to eventually turn some folks away,” said spokesperson, Nicole Mucci.

“(People) are coming to us came to us and saying, ‘Hey, do you have toiletries? Do you have a toothbrush, socks, a sleeping bag, because I've lost everything.'" 

DOWNTOWN EASTSIDE RESIDENTS SPEAK UP

UGM expected to serve 2,500 hot meals on Saturday as it hosted its annual Easter weekend luncheon. The lineup wrapped around the block and some attendees talked to CTV News about the mood in the neighbourhood since Wednesday’s initial decampment and the ensuing daily street sweeps. 

“I don't blame them for what's been happening, with fires and stuff,” said Sam, who was once homeless himself but is now in an Indigenous-focussed SRO. “I can walk the street now.”

Todd described a tinderbox atmosphere, with considerable tension now blanketing the area.

“People just stay to themselves,” he said. “Unless you're looking for trouble you don't talk to anybody else.”

Yvonne, who uses a walker to get around, described it as being “real hectic” during the cleanup on Wednesday but is frustrated campers have returned outside her supportive housing complex.

“They have a lot of garbage in front of the tents, like bike parts and garbage,” she said. “There's a garbage can right across, right near them, but they just throw it on the sidewalk.”

PLEA FOR COMPASSION

Michael spoke at length with CTV News, explaining he was grateful to have a place to stay at UGM after finding himself on the street in the wake of injuries and financial problems.

“If you stop and talk to people who live on the street or in shelters like this one, you realize that some people have less than others -- and it could be for a myriad of reasons, it's not always opiate addiction,” he said.

“I think the horror of the street and the tents will always be there and we have to all work together to find a solution that's both meaningful and tangible.”