Volunteers step up to protect most vulnerable from triple-digit temperatures
MIAMI - More than a week of heat emergencies and advisories cooled as homeless outreach workers continued a tropical storm-level response through Monday night.
The Miami-Dade Homeless Trust led countywide efforts to protect residents without an air-conditioned shelter from scorching temperatures during any Excessive Heat Warning.
The group and its partners extended hours to cooling sites and distributed 2,200 free bottles of water along with hundreds of ice packs and cooling towels over the weekend.
Volunteers also transported 20 people to cooling centers at Miami Rescue Mission and Camillus House.
People enjoying shelter at Camillus House waved and smiled Monday afternoon.
"Our concern is heat stroke," Ron Book, chairman of the Miami-Dade County Homeless Trust said.
Trust staff and volunteers saw people without shelter dehydrated or worse, Book said. Paramedics found a man laid out on concrete, unable to move and desperate for water, Book said.
"Those are situations that we can avoid," Book said. "If: A) We continue to get the message out as we do. B) Our volunteers and those that are our staff continue to circulate (information about cooling options) and that people know where they can go."
So, volunteers rolled wagons of water through Government Center and other areas where some of the most vulnerable gather.
Iris, a 74-year-old woman experiencing housing instability scored cold drinks and help landing a room in an air-conditioned shelter.
"Tomorrow, I (will) go to Camillus to take a shower," she said.
A volunteer planned to take Iris to the shelter.
Temperatures that felt like triple-digit heat Friday, Saturday, and Sunday continued a trend. The National Weather Service extended heat advisories for Miami-Dade, Broward, and Monroe County through Monday night.
That triggered a tropical storm-level response from the homeless trust.
"I've been the chairman for close to 30 years of this trust," Book said. "I don't remember a time where more lives were at risk (or) threatened than right now. I don't that people understand how significantly they are at risk."
It is why everyone trust partners served received palm-sized cards explaining signs of heat-related illness. Still, staff and volunteers feared missing someone in need.
With 1,057 people living in shelters in Miami-Dade County, Book said the trust is determined to protect each one and spread the word of where to find help to others.
