The City of Nanaimo says a broken water pipe at a warming station on Bowen Road forced the city to relocate approximately 30 people to another station.
Emergency program manager Evan Wood says the incident happened Saturday evening, and adds it was a scramble to find accommodations to house those people who were already staying in the facility.
“We had to move our visitors to one of our daytime warming centres which was not initially going to operate as an overnight facility,” he says. “With the help of the regional district, and transit, buses were able to get special bus service.”
Wood doesn’t know what caused the pipes to burst but says he is pleased with the collaborative effort between all parties involved to get the situation under control and folks relocated.
He says services are expected to continue but it will depend on a few factors.
“We’re looking at continuing to be open, but it will depend on the availability of staff,” Wood says.
The city approved four warming stations to house 138 unsheltered individuals, and provide basic needs and services, while the city experiences winter conditions
