VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla. — Hundreds of homeless people may be seeking shelter from the cold weather Tuesday night in Volusia County.
But many will have to find new places to go, as many churches in the area say they cannot open their doors this year because of COVID-19.
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The United Methodist Church of Port Orange has been helping at least two dozen homeless people get out of the cold whenever the temperature dropped below 40 degrees since the 1990s. But this year, their doors are staying shut.
Church volunteer Kay Luzier said it was a hard decision to make, but that they don’t have a way to partition people or enough personal protective equipment.
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Instead, places like the First Step Shelter in Daytona Beach will be used.
The shelter is bringing in heaters and extra blankets to convert its outdoor safe zone into a cold weather shelter where everyone will have to wear masks.
Officials said the shelter was almost at capacity Monday night.
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They expect that the need for shelter will grow as the temperature drops.
The Bridge in DeLand will also act as the cold weather shelter on the west side of the county with 20 open beds.
