Cold nights put homeless who lack shelter at risk for hypothermia

Victoria and Caden Milligan sleep on a porch at Trinity Lutheran Church in west Vancouver. They have a sleeping bag — no tent — and each other’s body heat to keep warm at night, along with hats and worn-out gloves.

“It’s literally so cold that I can’t grip a fork in the morning,” said Victoria Milligan.

The 21-year-old is pregnant, which makes staying outside with temperatures in the low- to mid-20s all the more difficult. It’s not cold enough for a person to get frostbite. Exposure to the cold, however, can cause hypothermia, where the body’s internal temperature drops below 95 degrees, which can lead to organ failure.

The Milligans walk a lot during the day. Victoria Milligan can’t find shoes that accommodate her swollen, calloused feet, so she wears flip-flops. They’re usually exhausted by the end of the day.

“As long as it’s not too cold, we fall asleep,” said Caden Milligan, 31.

The couple have met other people who are outside trying to stay warm as winterlike weather rolls in.

“For the last week, we’ve been getting widespread frost,” said Gerald Macke, meteorological technician with the National Weather Service in Portland.

Outlying cities, such as Battle Ground and Washougal, are going to be colder than Vancouver and the downtown Portland area, he said.

“We are working on opening up a new temporary emergency shelter, but it won’t be ready for a month. In the meantime, during this cold winter snap, it’s dangerous,” said Andy Silver, the executive director of the Council for the Homeless.

“We would love to provide more shelter spaces for people,” Silver said.

Right now, Silver said, more than 200 people are being given shelter.

But still, he said, “the demand is higher than the system can handle.”

Silver said the council is asking for sleeping bag donations and if any community members or churches have extra space available, they contact the council. Dorothy Rodriguez, an advocate for the homeless, has given out a lot of Mylar emergency blankets and hand warmers to those on the streets. She served food to people in Esther Short Park on Thanksgiving evening.

“It is so bone-chilling that it’s painful,” Rodriguez said.

It should be dry and cold until Tuesday, when there’s a chance for rain and warmer temperatures, Macke said. Daytime highs are reaching 50 degrees or warmer and wind chill hasn’t been much of a factor.

“That’s making it a much more tolerable situation, I think,” Macke said. “It’s just a risk at night.”

If people see somebody outside they are concerned about, they should call Share outreach, Silver said.

“Or if it’s really dangerous, they could call the police,” he said.