Cooling shelter opens in Lowndes County for people to escape heat
In Lowndes County, the Golden Triangle Regional Homeless Coalition and Lowndes County Emergency Management are teaming up to help people beat this week's brutal heat.
LOWNDES COUNTY, Miss. (WCBI) – In Lowndes County, the Golden Triangle Regional Homeless Coalition and Lowndes County Emergency Management Agency are teaming up to help people beat this week’s brutal heat.
A cooling shelter is opened for those who need to escape the high heat index. Many people have volunteered their time to put this together to give back to the community.
This week, temperatures reached triple digits, and that’s not including the heat index.
Rising temperatures can be dangerous, especially without regular access to air conditioning.
“We just knew that it would be in the hundreds today tomorrow and Saturday,” said Golden Triangle Regional Homeless Coalition President Susan Garton. “We just wanted to make sure for these three days we addressed the immediate need of the community. ”
“There are so many people that don’t have a place to go, and as you know, heat exhaustion- you can find people in their homes that are too hot,” said Lowndes County Emergency Management Agency Director. “I have seen there have been several deaths from this heat right now, so we are excited to provide shelter for those here in Lowndes County.”
The cooling shelter at Redeemer Church on Plymouth Road is for anyone in Lowndes County who needs to cool off.
“It’s not just for the homeless, it’s for anyone who may not have electricity or whose air conditioner is not quite working, this is just a refuge from the natural elements,” Garton said. “All of us deeply care about the citizens of Columbus. That’s why we do what we do. We just want to make sure that everyone is out of the heat.”
Community members are stepping up to volunteer at the shelter to help their neighbors. The volunteers have been training for months and hours on end to make sure everyone was prepared for “what-if” situations.
“I’ve been in a place in my life where I needed help, and if it weren’t for those people I would not be where I’m at now,” said volunteer Alicia Hollis. “So, my job now is to pay it forward. It shows that people do still have love in this world, and it brings us all together.”
The cooling shelter is open from June 29 to July 1 from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. If you would like to volunteer, you can call the Lowndes County EMA or the Golden Triangle Regional Homeless Coalition.
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