City Offers Emergency Shelter For Hundreds Escaping Cold
Brutal cold prompted the City of Birmingham to open an emergency warming shelter over the weekend. City officials say they’ll keep it open through Friday, but they need more volunteers and supplies.
Hundreds of Birmingham’s homeless found food and warm refuge inside the South Exhibition Hall at the BJCC. They spent the night in the makeshift shelter Monday and many stayed throughout the day Tuesday.
Don Lupo, director of the Mayor’s Office of Citizens Assistance, says about 200 people checked in during the weekend nights. Monday night, when the temperature dropped even lower, the number of people almost doubled.
Lupo says it’s part of a bigger problem.
“We only have three emergency shelters – the Salvation Army, First Light and the Firehouse Shelter, and none of them have enough beds,” he says.
Volunteers help staff the warming center and area restaurants provide food. But there are other needs, he says.
“We need grilled cheese sandwiches, soup. We need chili, personal-hygiene-type items, Chapstick. They go through Chapstick like crazy,” he says.
The warming station will be at the BJCC through Wednesday morning. It will close at 9 a.m. and reopen at 5 p.m. at the Boutwell Auditorium. Lupo says donations can be delivered to the warming station at the BJCC and at the Boutwell.
After an Arizona man was shot, an AI video of him addresses his killer in court
AI experts say this is likely the first time that AI has been used in the U.S. to create an impact statement read by an AI rendering of the deceased victim
3 former Memphis police officers found not guilty in the death of Tyre Nichols
A jury found the three men not guilty of all charges in connection with the 2023 fatal beating, including the most serious charge of second-degree murder.
Disney’s newest theme park will be in Abu Dhabi
The company's theme parks and cruises make up a fast-growing section of its profits. The new park will be located on Yas Island with a number of existing attractions.
Cheap and easy ways to stock your emergency go bag
Putting together a go bag doesn't have to be daunting or expensive. Here's how to create a functional kit that doesn't require much money, time or effort.
Black smoke rises from the Sistine Chapel as cardinals cast an unsuccessful first vote
Black smoke streamed from the chimney of the Sistine Chapel, signaling that the more than 130 cardinal electors have not come to a two-thirds agreement about who the next pope should be.
Tensions escalate as Pakistan calls India’s operation ‘an act of war’
Pakistan says India's strikes on Wednesday is "an act of war." India's military described its operation as targeting "terrorist infrastructure."
