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Portland’s homeless community is a tinder box COVID-19 could easily ignite.
Two houseless people have tested positive, but @multco won't provide details about where they slept, got their meals or where they are now.
Here's what's being done vs. what could be done.
Thread:
Two houseless people have tested positive, but @multco won't provide details about where they slept, got their meals or where they are now.
Here's what's being done vs. what could be done.
Thread:
Just how safe would YOU feel, sleeping in a large room with dozens of (maybe even 100+) other people in beds 6 feet apart with no barrier between them?
As we learn more about COVID-19, it appears 6 feet may not be a safe enough distance. https://www.oregonlive.com/coronavirus/2020/04/6-feet-of-social-distancing-not-nearly-enough-cdcs-recommendation-driving-some-experts-nuts.html
As we learn more about COVID-19, it appears 6 feet may not be a safe enough distance. https://www.oregonlive.com/coronavirus/2020/04/6-feet-of-social-distancing-not-nearly-enough-cdcs-recommendation-driving-some-experts-nuts.html
The city added handwashing stations and port-a-potties around town, and the parks department has re-opened bathrooms, but how effective are these measures when most say accessing a shower and clean clothes is a challenge amid closures? https://news.streetroots.org/2020/03/25/hygiene-needs-increase-homeless-resources-shrink-covid-19-closures
And, social distancing is not easy for people who have to line up to receive services and food. Old Town’s Blanchet House told Street Roots it’s nearly impossible to keep the hundreds of people lined up for meals spaced 6 feet apart. https://news.streetroots.org/2020/03/25/portland-meal-program-homeless-running-short-supplies
In San Francisco, Mayor London Breed originally took a similar approach to Portland, moving hundreds of people from existing shelters into a convention center, with mats spaced 6 feet apart.
The city’s street paper, @StreetSheet sounded an alarm: http://www.streetsheet.org/mayor-breed-opts-for-mass-indoor-camps/
The city’s street paper, @StreetSheet sounded an alarm: http://www.streetsheet.org/mayor-breed-opts-for-mass-indoor-camps/
Less than 24 hours after @StreetSheet’s report, Mayor Breed shifted his plan, and rather than moving people into a convention center, began thinning existing shelter populations by moving the most vulnerable people into hotels, BEFORE they got sick. http://www.streetsheet.org/under-pressure-city-shifts-plan-for-moscone-west/
In Portland, hotels and officials have made just 121 rooms available for people experiencing homelessness, who are showing symptoms.
In San Francisco, the city’s hotel council has offered a whopping 10,000 rooms for the most vulnerable. https://www.bizjournals.com/sanfrancisco/news/2020/04/08/city-expects-to-pay-more-than-100-million-on-hotel.html
In San Francisco, the city’s hotel council has offered a whopping 10,000 rooms for the most vulnerable. https://www.bizjournals.com/sanfrancisco/news/2020/04/08/city-expects-to-pay-more-than-100-million-on-hotel.html
Originally, @multco advised that shelters place barriers between beds, but then removed that guideline after @StreetRoots pointed out that no shelters were taking this measure, including the one at the Convention Center opened by the county. https://news.streetroots.org/2020/04/07/2-houseless-people-test-positive-covid-19-multnomah-county
While local officials plan more congregate shelters, many of Portland’s houseless feel shut out of indoor spaces, and in some cases, terrified of catching the novel coronavirus because they cannot self isolate. https://news.streetroots.org/2020/04/04/people-streets-relief-elements-scarce-under-stay-home-order
Question for @OregonTourism, @OregonRLA, @multco and @tedwheeler: Is it possible to follow San Francisco’s lead and move ALL of Portland’s most vulnerable residents into hotel rooms, where they could enjoy a real respite from the pandemic? https://www.sfexaminer.com/news/supes-to-require-sf-to-procure-8k-hotel-rooms-to-shelter-homeless-as-coronavirus-spreads/
