SAN ANTONIO – The population of people experiencing homelessness in our area continues to grow, meaning more people are having to endure the elements.
“Did you know you almost had a heat stroke?” said KSAT John Paul Barajas
“I fell? Where did I fall at?” asked Antonio, a man experiencing homelessness
“You fell over here in the front of the street by Corazon, on the other side of the entrance,” Barajas said.
Antonio passed out briefly; luckily, Corazon Ministries volunteers saw him and got him medical attention.
“It’s hot out there, it’s hot, it’s hot, it gets pretty hot in San Antonio,” Antonio said.
And with tomorrow’s hottest day of the year forecast, local nonprofits have all hands on deck.
“We’d be open from 8:30 am to 5 pm on a normal day, and during the extended hours, we are open until 8 pm,” said Erika Borrego, CEO of Corazon Ministries
Borrego said they started their extended day shelter hours Sunday and will keep it that way throughout the week. She adds they’re seeing about a hundred more people than they normally do due to the heat.
“Right now, Haven for Hope is at our maximum capacity for individual single men for our low barrier shelter, and because of that, we have started a partnership with endeavors to offer emergency overnight sleeping,” said Terri Behling, Communications Director for Haven for Hope
Terri Behling with Haven says that operating at above capacity is something they have had to deal with for the past few years.
Yesterday, Haven provided overnight shelter for 1,676 people, but their facility is designed to accommodate a little more than 1,400.
During times of extreme heat and cold, multiple organizations and nonprofits coordinate to ensure they are assisting as many people as possible.
“All outreach teams throughout our community are trained on signs to look for if folks are feeling dizzy or faint or dehydrated,” said Behling
Both Haven and Corazon say donations and volunteers are needed but that there is one thing more important than that.
“Just knowing everyone has a story and everyone deserves access to resources and a safe place to lay their head,” said Behling
