As the cold, wet weather moved in, local shelters filled up. When the conditions get this bad, several shelters partner with organizations to increase their intake by as much as 50 percent.
“And they work, they’re comfortable,” said Dusty White while stacking sleeping mats against a wall at the Austin Resource Center for the Homeless shelter.
He and Larry Cunningham are two of the 200 or so regulars at the ARCH. But Friday’s cold weather brought more homeless people through the door.
“You’ve got people from all over just coming in tonight because of the freezing rain or the weather itself,” said White.
When temperatures drop below 32 degrees or are at 35 degrees and wet, the ARCH. partners with the city, Salvation Army and Capital Metro to expand available shelter options.
“What the females have to go through is a lot different than the males, and I think that should be addressed,” said Cunningham.
In the 11th year of expanded cold weather shelters, Front Steps executive director Mitchell Gibbs said safety is the priority.
“Last year we had over 170 individuals experiencing homelessness die on our streets here in Austin. It’s really important for us during these extreme temperatures to be able to get people in, be able to keep them safe,” he said.
In his warmest clothes, which include a baseball cap, gloves and shorts, White is thankful more shelters are open.
“I’ve seen a whole lot of different people in here today which I never see much,” said White.
Last year, shelter options were expanded 39 nights due to cold weather. This year, Front Steps officials said they’re up to six nights and hosted more than 300 people at shelters Thursday night.