‘We’ve got room;’ Several Dayton shelters available for people to escape the bitter cold

DAYTON — The Miami Valley has been dealing with frigid temperatures this week and several warming shelters have opened across the area.

>>RELATED: ‘Every person has infinite value;’ Pop-up warming shelter opens its doors to ‘unsheltered’ neighbors

The Montgomery County’s Homeless Solutions Policy Board announced earlier this week on social media that it activated its extreme cold weather plan.

News Center 7′s Taylor Robertson spoke with someone at St. Vincent de Paul about what they’re doing to help.

John King, the assistant director of mission advancement at St. Vincent DePaul, said the shelter is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and prepared to make room for anyone who needs it.

>>PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Warming shelters hours released as cold temperatures head to Miami Valley

Montgomery County posted on its Facebook page that people can go to these locations:

• Gettysburg Gateway Shelter for Men on 1921 S. Gettysburg Ave
• St. Vincent de Paul Gateway Shelter for Women and Families on 120 W. Apple Street
• Miami Valley Housing Opportunities (MVHO) PATH Street Outreach

King told Robertson that the extreme cold temperatures are the time that he insists people come to one of their shelters to warm up.

“(We are) open 24 hours a day, guests are able to come in during a time of crisis like at 2 a.m. and they’ll work with our staff at the front desk to just some preliminary information,” he said. “That way we can treat them with the utmost respect, and then they’re welcome to stay warm here in our shelter. We’ve got room for any and all that needs a place to be.”

King says guests get three free meals a day, a place to stay with a warm bed, and case managers who help them work towards long-term housing.

>>Accumulating snow expected today, tomorrow; Dangerously cold this weekend

Our Storm Center 7 team of meteorologists is tracking the chance for accumulating snow starting later tonight through tomorrow. Some portions of the region are under a Winter Weather Advisory starting later today at 5 p.m. through early Saturday morning.

We are also expected to see more dangerously cold temperatures this weekend.

Our Storm Center 7 team of meteorologists will have the latest updates today on News Center 7 at Noon and later today during our 90 minutes of coverage starting at 5 p.m.

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