CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (WCIA) — The Champaign-Urbana Public Health District is urging local businesses to volunteer as emergency homeless shelters as temperatures are set to soar into triple-digit heat indices next week.
Julie Pryde, the district’s administrator, utilized Facebook to seek an air-conditioned venue such as a gym with enough room for 50 cots complete with bedding. Additionally, she mentioned that the district is seeking assistance from businesses or donors to provide meals for those who would be accommodated at this potential site.
“People who live on the street are not in a healthy situation; it’s an environment lacking essentials like water and shade,” Pryde stated.
One month ago, WCIA reported that organizations supporting homeless individuals are advocating for one centrally-located cooling center in the Champaign-Urbana area. Now they are trying to make that a reality.
Cunningham Township said it takes the entire community, not just homeless services, to fix the root of the problem.
“We have to reframe how we think about public safety and public emergencies,” Daniell Chynoweth, supervisor of Cunningham Township, said. “Every public building needs to be a cooling center now.”
Until Chynoweth and Pryde successfully find a location to house the cooling center, they are sharing some simple advice.
“Anybody who sees anybody outside or someone’s not able to cope in this heat, help them, reach out to them and bring them to safety because we don’t have the infrastructure we need to deal with this situation,” Chynoweth said.
