Philadelphia has called its first “Code Blue” of the season, expanding the resources available to homeless people due to frigid temperatures.
During a Code Blue, the Office of Homeless Services and its partners run 24-hour outreach teams to identify homeless individuals and offer them space inside. Additional beds are also opened up, and unhoused individuals are permitted to remain in emergency shelters throughout the day.
City officials declared the Code Blue on Saturday and said the measures would remain in effect until further notice. Temperatures in Philadelphia are not expected to hit the mid-40s until Thursday, with lows in the 20s, according to the National Weather Service.
Anyone who sees someone who appears to be homeless is encouraged to call OHS’s outreach hotline at 215-232-1984.
People living on the street can call the number or visit an intake center. Appletree Family Center (1430 Cherry St.) and Roosevelt Darby Center (804 N. Broad St.) are open from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays. The Veterans Multi-Service Center (213-217 N. 4th Street) is available for walk-ins from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday and Thursdays.
Family intake centers that are open weekends, holidays and overnight are located at Red Shield Family Residence (715 N. Broad Street) and ACTS After Hour Intake Site (1300 E. Tulpehocken St.). Single men can go to the Mike Hinson Resource Center (1701 W. Lehigh Ave.) outside of business hours, and women can visit Gaudenzia’s House of Passage (48th Street and Haverford Avenue).
Code Blue alerts go into effect when temperatures feel at or near 20 degrees with wind chill, or 32 degrees or lower with rain or snow, according to OHS.
More than 970 unsheltered people were counted in January during the city’s annual homeless census, known as the Point-in-Time count, an increase of nearly 40% compared to the prior year.
