The Barbados Alliance to End Homeless has activated its Spry Street, The City, homeless shelter to a 24-hour operation until ashfall as result of the La Soufriere volcanic activity in St Vincent stops affecting the island.
President of the BAEH Kemar Saffrey said that this urgent decision was taken today out of an abundance of caution, and against the background that a number of the Alliance’s clients are known to suffer from respiratory challenges.
“We are taking them in urgently. Also because of what the general public is experiencing like the burning of the eyes, throat, sneezing and other respiratory issues we know that homeless persons must be experiencing the exact symptoms. So most of them will start coming from this evening and we will allow them to stay here throughout the day instead of leaving in the morning as they usually do.
“This is all in an effort for us to protect and keep them safe from the ash, which is known to be toxic. We know that unlike normal citizens, they don’t have money to buy medication to combat the symptoms of the ash so we will take them in to protect them from it. For sure we know that some of them suffer with asthma and then we have to consider that many of them are elderly folks suffering with different ailments,” Saffrey said.
Saffrey said that he was currently putting a team together to head to areas known to be populated by homeless persons, to alert them that they can seek shelter from the ash at the shelter.
“So while they are here everything will be provided for them. And we will speak to all the different feeding groups to see if they can come to the shelter just for the time being so that the homeless would not have to go out to them. But we are asking members of the public who may know of homeless persons to let them know about the option of using the shelter for 24 hours at this time. But in the meantime when we go out we will give them additional masks, bottle waters and kits, particularly to those who may not want to take up the offer,” Saffrey said.
He said that even though the Alliance is making this adjustment to its operations, all COVID-19 protocols already in place at the shelter will continue to be followed. (AH)
