LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WHAS11) – Frigid temperatures moving into the Metro means homeless shelters are going into white flag status. But homeless outreach leaders fear the policy won’t be enough to protect a population in danger when cold weather comes.
Sources close to the homeless community report there were two cold-weather-related deaths over the weekend. The coroner has not confirmed the cause of death on either case yet. But those who work with the homeless closely say they fear this is the reality and that people are dying because they aren't getting the shelter and services they need.
"We have lost people already because of cold weather this year. It is heartbreaking for people like us who go out and volunteer,” Wendy Manganaro said.
Manganaro leads Fed with Faith, a homeless outreach organization, serving downtown Louisville and surrounding areas.
Manganaro said, “We can only do the best we can, and we try to hit as many people as we can. The fact of the matter is – we’ve never seen numbers like this."
There are high numbers of homeless but the space in shelters has not increased. That's why Manganaro’s team goes out on the coldest of nights, searching for people in secluded spots and praying they're still alive.
She said, "People will die out there if people aren't out there searching for them. They probably don't think they're going to die but that's just the reality of it. That it happens."
The cold weather outreach groups offer warm soup, fresh socks, blankets and gloves or whatever they have in stock. But this year that stock is running especially thin.
Manganaro said she’s worried they won't have enough and looking to a Tuesday meeting with the Mayor's Homeless Task Force to find real solutions.
"There needs to be a community-wide lets resolve this and let’s get out of this emergency state that we're in so people aren't freezing to death on our streets,” she said.
►Contact reporter Shay McAlister at smcalister@whas11.com. Follow her on Twitter (@WHAS11Shay) and Facebook.