City adds shelter beds, readies shuttle service for homeless ahead of winter storm

As temperatures are expected to drop below freezing this weekend, the city of Albuquerque is adding temporary beds to its homeless shelters and preparing to transport people out of the cold. 

“At its core, this effort is about looking out for people when they’re most vulnerable,” said Albuquerque Community Safety's Deputy Director of Field Operations Walter Adams in a statement to the Journal on Friday. “As winter conditions worsen, our teams are ensuring individuals experiencing homelessness have transportation to safe, warm places — so no one is left exposed to winter conditions.”

This weekend, temperatures will reach nighttime lows of 16 degrees in Albuquerque, said National Weather Service meteorologist Nico Porcelli. With the wind chill, those temperatures will feel like 5 degrees. 

In frigid weather in the teens and below, people can get hypothermia in an hour without proper shelter or heating, Porcelli said.

"It's definitely not safe for people to be outside in that," he said.

Along with the bone-chilling temperatures, Albuquerque is expected to get rainfall Friday night and snowfall over the weekend. 

Porcelli warned of the dangers of portable heaters, which in both homes and tents could cause carbon monoxide poisoning. NWS is advising people to check the batteries in their carbon monoxide detectors or purchase one if they don't have one.

With a cold front coming, the city faces a shortage of shelter beds. 

The city estimates there are 5,000 people living on the streets in Albuquerque, while there are around 1,300 beds in city shelters. 

In anticipation of cold weather, the city has added 105 "overflow" beds, according to city spokesperson Dan Mayfield.

Though the city anticipates more calls with cold weather closing in, its emergency overnight shuttle service has been ongoing since November. 

Since Nov. 1, ACS has transported 2,957 people out of the cold and into shelters, Mayfield said.

On Friday afternoon, Bradlee St. Pierre readied himself for the storm, setting up his camp on First Street as traffic roared by on neighboring Interstate 40. St. Pierre piled numerous blankets, both big and small, ornate and plain, onto his shopping cart to keep warm through the night.

St. Pierre, who said he had been on the streets since he was 10, didn't express concern for the incoming cold — having battled the elements all these years. 

Gillian Barkhurst is the local government reporter for the Journal. She can be reached at gbarkhurst@abqjournal.com or on Twitter @G_Barkhurst