The San Francisco Homeless Outreach Team is transporting homeless individuals to emergency shelters tonight and is urging residents to contact them immediately if they see someone who appears to be without shelter from the storm.
The city’s Homeless Outreach Team is canvassing streets and encampments to encourage people on the streets to go to shelter during the storm. It is also asking concerned residents to call 311, ask for the Homeless Outreach Team, known as the HOT team, and report the location of the person in need.
The HOT team will be transporting those in need of housing to traditional shelters as well as emergency facilities that are remaining open during the day and night, such as churches and recreation centers.
Emergency shelters have been opened at churches across San Francisco to help those without housing or shelter from the storm stay dry during the storm through the night.
Churches expected to remain open during the day on Friday are First Friendship Family Shelter, Bethel AME Church at 916 Laguna St., which can accommodate up to 30 women and Providence Foundation at the Providence Baptist Church, which can hold up to 110 individuals and family members.
Shelter can also be sought at St. Vincent de Paul Society’s Multi-Service Center South at 525 Fifth Street, which will have 70 additional drop-in slots open today, despite usual closure during daytime hours.
Episcopal Community Services Shelters, Sanctuary and Next Door, are open during the day as well.
Mission Neighborhood Resource Center at 165 Capp St. near 17th and Mission streets will stay open until 9 p.m. tonight and open early at 5:00 a.m. on Friday.
Mother Brown’s dining room at United Council of Human Services at 2111 Jennings St. in the Bayview District will be open throughout the storm as well.
In order to ensure that homeless individuals in the South of Market neighborhood have a warm, dry place to spend the day and night, the San Francisco Human Services Agency has opened the Gene Friend Recreation Center at 270 Sixth St. to serve as an emergency shelter.
The center, which has a capacity of 169 people, will remain open through Friday, according to the San Francisco Department of Emergency Management.
In the Tenderloin neighborhood, the Gubbio Project at St. Boniface Catholic Church and St. Anthony Foundation are together providing 24-hour shelter and food to those in need, according to St. Anthony’s spokesman Karl Robillard.
The Gubbio Project is inviting those who cannot get to an established homeless shelter to stay in the pews of St. Boniface Church at 133 Golden Gate Ave., located between Leavenworth and Jones streets, until 6 p.m. At that point, up to 100 individuals will be able to stay in St. Anthony’s dining hall next door at 121 Golden Gate Ave. until 6 a.m. Friday.
Robillard said that already about 200 homeless residents of San Francisco have taken refuge in St. Boniface Church and that leftover turkey dinners are being served at St. Anthony’s dining room.
The Glide Memorial Church dining room has lost power and is referring people in need of a warm meal to St. Anthony’s.
St. Anthony’s has power and is prepared with generators to continue serving more than 3,000 hot meals today.
All San Francisco homeless shelters are expected to stay open during the day and have expanded hours at drop-in centers.
Additionally, the Department of Public Health is prepared to allow individuals to have a seat in chairs at the HOT team’s offices located at 50 Ivy St. and at the Department of Public Health’s Sobering Center at 1171 Mission St., near 8th Street.
Hannah Albarazi, Bay City News
