Siloam Mission scrambling after broken sprinkler damages food, medical supplies

Winnipeg Free Press - ONLINE EDITION

By: Staff Writer

Posted: 11:43 AM | Comments: | Last Modified: 1:57 PM | Updates

A sprinkler system malfunction at Siloam Mission forced approximately 400 people out into the cold this morning.

Fire crews responded to the incident at 300 Princess St., just after 9 a.m. Crews found significant water damage in the building, brought on by a frozen sprinkler head in the medical supply room of Saul Sair Health Centre. There was extensive leakage into the basement, where staff stored donated food and clothing. The amount of damage to those items, and whether anything can be saved, is still being determined.

Initial reports indicate two to three pallets of food have been lost.

"Hopefully we will know soon if or how much of our food and donated items have been damaged by this," executive director Floyd Perras said, in a statement. "We are still investigating the cause and the extent of damage."

Quick-thinking officials at Siloam moved staff and patrons to a temporary location at 303 Stanley St., directly behind the Princess location. The kitchen and dining room at Siloam are still operational; the clinic and the clothing rooms have been closed indefinitely.

The mission lost a significant amount of medical supplies and may be faced with major renovations in the health centre. Perras is counting on the generosity of people during this holiday season to help the shelter get back to where it was.

"We will need to rely on the support of our donors and volunteers to get through this crisis," Perras said. "We still dont know the extent of the loss at this point and its quite a shock happening right before Christmas."

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Siloam Mission scrambling after broken sprinkler damages food, medical supplies