Thompson picks up empties, but ignores drunks

Authorities in Thompson are being called on to do more about solvent and alcohol abuse in the northern city after a woman froze to death in the community in April.

Corrine Beardy, a 27-year-old First Nations woman from Shamattawa, was found frozen to death in a wooded area of downtown Thompson in April, her body surrounded by dozens of empty sherry bottles. A toxicology report showed Beardy had high levels of solvents and alcohol in her system.

Beardy's death startled the community, but some say it was the inevitable result of rampant alcohol and solvent abuse by vagrants in the city and more should be done to help them.

Transient alcohol and solvent users can be seen all over Thompson: in the bushes, downtown, even under the "Welcome to Thompson"sign that greets visitors.

Social agencies say most of them come from nearby First Nations. Some live on dry reserves and come to Thompson to socialize, while others are homeless; some stay for the weekend, while others stay on for months.

Collection drive for liquor bottles

Raymond Flat from Split Lake says he's come to Thompson to drink his entire life.

"My own people, they don't want to make no trouble, actually. Honestly. They just want to get together," he said.

Thompson RCMP are kept busy picking up intoxicated people. In 2004, Thompson police picked up 2,562 people under the Intoxicated Persons Detention Act more than 32 times the rate as Winnipeg.

Dozens of bush camps around the community show the remains of past parties, including empty bottles of solvents like paint thinner, hairspray and most of all cheap sherry.

The problem is so bad, the Thompson Chamber of Commerce organizes an annual sherry-bottle collection program to deal with the mess left behind by drinkers. Five cents per empty bottle is issued at local beer vendors. Typically, citizens pick up and return 16,000 bottles for the five-cent deposit.

"If you're expecting me to make a comment on why there's so many sherry bottles, we won't do that," Chamber of Commerce spokeswoman Penny Byer told CBC News. "We're not a social agency, and we don't speak to those issues."

City hall ponders drug strategy

Social agencies in Thompson do offer addictions programs, but none that are specifically targeted to the transient population of alcohol and solvent abusers. There are no harm-reduction programs, and no street-level health workers.

"Do we have an outreach worker here in Thompson, to go on the streets? No, we do not," said May Mossip, who manages the local homeless shelter. "To help people drinking on the streets, drinking around the corner, we don't have anybody at this time."

Some say Thompson is picking up the empties, but ignoring the drinkers.

City Coun. Adrian de Groot admits the city should do more: "Who is responsible? You know, you could debate that and stay away from those issue. [But] we have to take ownership of coordinating that."

Thompson's city hall is now developing a drug strategy, but it's only in the committee stage, with councillors discussing which social agencies would be best able to help the transient population of alcohol users.

Until the strategy is complete, public drinkers are likely to remain a common sight on Thompson streets even if the liquor bottles themselves disappear.