'We got less than 24 hours': Evacuated Windsorites worried about their next move
An emergency shelter for evacuated residents of 1616 Ouellette Avenue is set to close Monday morning.
“I have nowhere to go. I don't know what they're [the city] going to do,” resident Jerrod Lefler told CTV News Windsor on Sunday outside the Constable John Atkinson Memorial Community Centre where he’s been living for the past 13 days.
“It's killing my disability. I have anxiety. PTSD. Depression, all that fun stuff. It's exacerbated. I'm lucky if I get three hours of sleep a night,” added Lefler.
The City of Windsor and Canadian Red Cross opened the emergency shelter on Nov. 22, after evacuating the 120-unit residential building because of unsafe living conditions.
The building has no heat and an unstable electrical supply.
Since then, Windsor’s housing department has been trying to find new places for the residents to live.
“There’s some people who've gotten out of here, thank God, but there's some people that tomorrow literally have nowhere to go,” Lefler said.
Three residents CTV News Windsor spoke with on Sunday indicated there are approximately 30 to 40 people who don’t know where they’re moving on Monday.
Residents being evacuated at 1616 Ouellette Ave apartment building in Windsor, Ont. on Tuesday, Nov. 22, 2022. (Sijia Liu/CTV News Windsor)
David Baker said he’s feeling, “Frustrated. Moody. Tired. [I’m] just wishing this whole thing moved quicker than it does.”
“I'm grateful for the help that we are getting,” added resident Billie-Jo Steptoe. “We're getting three square meals a day. We're warm. There's security here.”
But Steptoe is also frustrated she doesn’t know where she’s moving on Monday. She told CTV News Windsor she has filled out an application for a new home somewhere in the city.
“I have to walk into a place that I don't know with my hands full of stuff and try to figure out where I'm going,” said Steptoe.
In an interview with CTV News Windsor on Friday, city officials said they would be working all weekend to find housing.
“We have staff on site. Many of our social services staff, we have social workers, we have people you know working really hard to find alternatives and help these people,” said Kirk Whittal, the city’s executive director for Housing and Children's Services.
Pictures taken inside 1616 Ouellette Avenue in Windsor, Ont. showcase the deteriorating conditions of the apartment building which has been without heat for months. (Sijia Liu/CTV News Windsor)
In an earlier news release, they asked landlords to reach out if they had affordable housing units available.
Jason Moore, a spokesperson for the City of Windsor issued the following statement to CTV News Windsor on Sunday afternoon:
“We continue to work around the clock to try and find alternate accommodations and consider all options for the displaced tenants. We know this is a very anxious time for those few remaining at the temporary emergency shelter but we’re committed to doing everything we can to help and we can assure everyone that no one will be without safe shelter. No one will have to live in the street while they await the reopening of their building at 1616 Ouellette."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Ottawa public school board, 3 Toronto-area school boards launch lawsuit against social media giants
The Ottawa-Carleton District School Board and three school boards in the Toronto-area have launched legal action against social media giants, accusing them of "disrupting students' fundamental right to education."
Several flight attendants from Pakistan have gone missing after landing in Canada
Multiple flight attendants from Pakistan International Airlines have abandoned their jobs and are believed to have sought asylum in Canada in the past year and a half, a spokesperson for the government-owned airline says.
Tipping is off the table at this Toronto restaurant
A Toronto restaurant introduced a surprising new rule that reduced the cost of a meal and raised the salaries of staff.
Rainfall warnings of up to 90 mm among weather alerts in effect for 7 provinces
Rainfall warnings of up to 90 millimetres, air quality advisories and other alerts have been issued for seven Canadian provinces, according to the latest forecasts.
King Charles calls for acts of friendship in first public remarks since Kate's cancer diagnosis
King Charles III gave public remarks for Maundy Thursday, addressing the importance of acts of friendship, following his and Catherine, Princess of Wales’ cancer diagnoses.
A Nigerian woman reviewed some tomato puree online. Now she faces jail
A Nigerian woman who wrote an online review of a can of tomato puree is facing imprisonment after its manufacturer accused her of making a “malicious allegation” that damaged its business.
Donald Trump assails judge and his daughter after gag order in N.Y. hush-money criminal case
Donald Trump lashed out Wednesday at the New York judge who put him under a gag order that bars him from commenting publicly about witnesses, prosecutors, court staff and jurors in his upcoming hush-money criminal trial.
A fight to protect the dignity of Michelangelo's David raises questions about freedom of expression
Michelangelo's David has been a towering figure in Italian culture since its completion in 1504. But in the current era of the quick buck, curators worry the marble statue's religious and political significance is being diminished.
Doctors visiting a Gaza hospital are stunned by the war's toll on Palestinian children
An international team of doctors visiting a hospital in central Gaza was prepared for the worst. But the gruesome impact Israel’s war against Hamas is having on Palestinian children still left them stunned.