Torontonians woke up to the coldest day of 2015 Tuesday morning as the temperature plunged to – 21 C at Pearson International Airport, flirting with the all-time record for this date.
The frigid conditions, which felt like -32 C with the wind chill, prompted the city’s chief medical officer of health to extend the Extreme Cold Weather Alert.
As a result, two 24-hour drop-in warming centres will be open at Margaret's Toronto East Drop-in at 323 Dundas St. E. and St. Felix Social Ministries Outreach at 25 Augusta Ave until further notice.
Transit tokens are also being offered at drop-in centres so people can reach shelters where additional spaces are being made available.
The cold is also impacting public transit with the TTC pulling 28 streetcars out of service for the evening commute. Buses will be running on the 502, 503 and 511 streetcar routes instead.
The temperature warmed up slightly through the day, hitting a high of – 12 C, however it is expected to drop to - 14 C overnight before rebouding to - 5 C on Wednesday.
The extreme cold arrived the morning after a candlelight vigil Monday evening at the Stop Food Community Centre for two homeless men who died in Toronto last week when the temperature was also around -20 C with the wind chill. Another memorial service was held Tuesday at the Church of the Holy Trinity at 19 Trinity Square.
Meanwhile, the city is encouraging residents to check on vulnerable friends, neighbours and relatives to see if they are being negatively affected by the weather. Toronto’s chief medical officer, Dr. David McKeown, says hypothermia occurs when the body’s core temperature drops below 35 C and lead to severe consequences including organ failure and death.
Environment Canada had issued an extreme cold warning for Mississauga, Brampton, Vaughan, Richmond Hill, Newmarket, Peterborough, Barrie, Hamilton, Burlington and Oakville Tuesday morning, but the warning was lifted around 10:30 a.m.
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