South Florida homeless population being warned of sudden drop in temperature

MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. – The sun will go down and the temperature will drop in South Florida on Friday.

Folks will dust off their jackets and hoodies, but for many, this is far more serious.

Ron Book, chairman of the Miami-Dade Homeless Trust, has been going around town with his team, alerting the homeless and those with insufficient housing that temperatures are about to tumble, and that there is help for those who need it.

“This is about proactivity. This is about doing things up front,” Book said. “We’re warning them the cold weather is coming. The front is on its way. Sometimes we’ve got to whip out the weather report. We’ve got about 50 or 60 people out bringing people in from the county line on the north end to the county line on the south end.”

Local 10 News’ Andrew Perez walked with Book and a crew across Downtown Miami offering people rides to shelters and registering them for services. Some of them left right on the spot.

Many shelters are also opening up overflow space.

Book says this about human life, but also preventing more sick people from flooding South Florida hospitals because of the cold.

Further north in Broward County, several crews are working overtime, helping making space and reaching out to those who may be in need.

The Broward Sheriff’s Office is also offering folks an alternative to shelters in the form of blankets.

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About the Author
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Andrew Perez is a South Florida native who joined the Local 10 News team in May 2014.

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