The prolonged cold snap in Saskatchewan is bringing to light the dangers of being unprepared for the cold, especially for new residents not accustomed to prairie winters.
While the winter blues are certainly settling in, so too can frostbite if bare skin is exposed to the air for any length of time in this cold weather.
“Realistically, anything lower than zero degrees, you can obtain frostbite,” Mike Schindel, the Medavie Health Services West operation manager said.
“Temperatures with the wind chill, when it hits to about -26 or so, that’s what the wind chill. It can take easily 30 minutes. And you can get frostbite with that… it’s usually the fingers, toes, the nose, cheeks and ears.”
Mohamad Baydoun, a doctor at the University of Regina, said frostbite can be minor or severe and could require medical attention. He said newcomers to Saskatchewan need to be very careful.
“They might be coming from climates where severe cold and heavy snow are uncommon,” he said.
“When they are unaccustomed to cold temperatures and harsh winters, they probably underestimate how quickly frostbite can develop.”
Get breaking National news
Schindel notes the most important thing is dressing for the weather.
“If you can layer up that is the best thing,” he said. “If you have some moisture-wicking material, you can wear that.
-
Trump announces 25% tariffs on foreign steel, aluminum -
Trudeau vows ‘not a snowball’s chance in hell’ of Canada becoming 51st US state -
‘Unacceptable’: Trudeau calls Trump tariffs on aluminum and steel ‘entirely unjustified’ -
‘All hands on deck’ to beef up Canada’s border security after Trump’s tariff break
“Make sure you have good mitts or gloves, too. And if you have good boots, hopefully there is some insulation in them.”
Both Regina and Saskatoon are under extreme cold warnings from Environment Canada.
“A multi-day episode of very cold wind chills is expected,” the warning reads. “A prolonged extreme cold event continues over southern Saskatchewan, with most of the region experiencing extreme wind chill values of minus 40 or lower at times this week.”
With the extreme cold, warming shelters in Saskatoon and Regina are top of mind for some. Saskatoon, however, says warming shelter locations have yet to reach max capacity.
The city’s director of emergency management Pamela Goulden-Mcleod said all overnight warming locations are busier during extreme cold but there’s still lots of capacity for more people if needed.
The men’s overnight warming location is averaging around 80 to 90 men per night. The co-ed location averaging around 150. The women’s shelter averages around 65 to 80 women per night.
Goulden-Mcleod attributes the extra space to having additional locations this year.
“Last year we only had one location and we saw such significant numbers for that,” Goulden-Mcleod said. “Definitely the colder it is the more people we have in those locations so we do see that sometimes people can get creative and find other places to be.”
Goulden-Mcleod notes all overnight warming locations are in need of winter clothes donations and even items like hand warmers can go a long way.
