‘We see them every day’: Hundreds of hospital visits to deal with frostbite in Winnipeg this winter

Michelle Gerwing breaks down the data showing more Manitobans are going to the emergency room to treat frostbite.

Temperatures in Winnipeg are slowly starting to warm up, but the recent cold stretch increased the risk of frostbite for many in the city.

Daryl Dyck, a volunteer nurse at the health unit at Siloam Mission, said frostbite is something he sees every time he works there.

“We see them every day, particularly this winter, and every winter we see them. It’s toes, it’s fingers, so it’s kind of a regular occurrence. Today, this morning, I saw two people (with frostbite),” said Dyck.

Frostbite is when the cold leads to loss of circulation in your extremities, which eventually causes those areas to die off.

In extreme cases, the skin can turn black, and amputation is required.

“In terms of functionality, when you think of what we do with our fingers, our tips of our fingers, and even walking, you lose your stability with walking, you lose your ability to do some of the daily tasks like eating and dressing, and those types of things…It can be significant.”

Data from Shared Health shows there have been 249 incidents where someone has gone to the emergency department or urgent care for frostbite this winter. That is up from last winter, when there were only 192 visits.

No amputation data is available for this winter, but there were five amputations last winter.

The 2022/23 winter was the worst over the last three years, with 323 emergency department visits and 12 frostbite-related amputations.

The increase in frostbite cases correlates with the cold stretch of weather Winnipeg has dealt with.

So far for the 2024/25 winter, there have been 25 days where temperatures have dropped below -25 C without factoring in the windchill, according to information from Environment and Climate Change Canada.

That is up significantly from just 10 days last winter that were below -25 C.

As well, this cold snap from Feb. 10 to Feb. 19 has been the longest consecutive stretch of days hitting below -25 C since 2022.

Dyck said when temperatures dip that low, especially for that long, it can have quite the negative impact on the homeless population.

“Once we see them, it’s kind of too late. We can put a dressing on the area. We can try to limit the damage. But ultimately, we’re treating the unfortunate incident of being cold outside.”

Dyck mentioned they work to educate people at Siloam Mission about being in the cold and offer the proper clothing to help protect them from the elements, but in the end, he said it is up to each person and what they want to do.

According to the Canadian Frostbite Care Network, the best way to avoid frostbite is by wearing warm, dry clothes and not having skin exposed to the cold.

If exercising outside, it’s recommended to bring an extra pair of clothes to change into afterward. People are also encouraged to prepare for cold weather, like having an extra pair of warm clothes in the car just in case a car breaks down or there is an accident.