It's a typical September in Arizona. Most days, the high is still over 100 degrees. Some 130 people experiencing homelessness died from the heat in the Phoenix area in 2021 and 172 in 2020, according to the Public Health Department of Maricopa County. Those numbers are double and triple the totals from the previous four years.
Amy Schwabenlender, HSC Executive Director, was recently interviewed on Arizona Horizon about the how the heat affects the people we serve, especially the unsheltered. In addition to the nearly 900 individuals who are sheltered at the Campus, there are now over 800 people living in tents in the neighborhood surrounding the Campus. HSC has expanded both access to services and resources (the Brian Garcia Welcome Center, which is now open 24 hours a day) and Street Outreach (the Outreach team is growing and staff are on the streets around the Campus every day meeting with individuals to see what can be done to alleviate their situations.) [Watch the interview - jump to the 16:00 minute mark]
|