PORTLAND, Ore. — For people living on the streets of Portland's Old Town neighborhood, staying clean is a full-time job, and now more than ever. Late last week, the Multnomah County Health Department issued a public health warning after increased cases of Shigella were found in Old Town, including among those living outside and in shelters.
Shigella is highly contagious and spreads through fecal matter. Symptoms include diarrhea, fever, stomach cramps and sometimes vomiting, and can last three to 10 days.
"I spent Christmas at Providence Hospital. This is not a game," said Michael Lynn Moreland Jr., who found out he had Shigella after checking himself into a detox facility.
"When I went to Fora Health, I couldn't hold any food down. It's gross, but I soiled my clothes. It's disgusting. To the point where they weren't medically equipped for it," Moreland Jr said. He was sent to the hospital where he spent five days, including Christmas.
"I couldn't even leave my room because it's that contagious," he said.
County health officials are encouraging people who live and work in Old Town to wash their hands often and remove shoes before going inside their home or tent. "Or even just sharing a cigarette with someone that you don't know," Moreland Jr. said. "Sharing a vaporizer pen if it has fecal matter on it and you ingest that, you get that infection."
When a KGW crew was in Old Town on Tuesday, they found several homeless people sick with similar symptoms. Ricky, who said he's been homeless for years, has been struggling with a high fever, fatigue and vomiting for the past few days. Jade Elliot, another homeless person, described their symptoms.
"I was just puking and just going to the bathroom," Elliot said.
"It is tough for folks outside when there is not access to clean bathrooms," Moreland Jr. said.
One way homeless people try and stay clean is by going to the county's Behavioral Health Resource Center on the corner of Southwest 9th Avenue and Harvey Milk Street. A county van parks at Northwest 5th Avenue and Glisan Street in Old Town, where outreach workers hand out tickets for people who want to use the hygiene services at the resource center.
"Go over there so you can have a healthy place to kick it for a second," said one homeless man leaving the van Tuesday morning.
It's a service many people are coming to rely on. "I take a shower. Try to get new socks and keep myself as clean as possible," Elliot said.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported that Shigella causes an estimated 450,000 infections in the United States each year. There have been 45 cases reported in December so far within Washington, Clackamas and Multnomah counties.
Most strains typically enter regions from returning international travelers or through social-sexual networks, which is why Shigella among people experiencing homelessness is abnormal, the CDC said. Unfortunately, when Shigella does spread within homeless communities, which have limited access to hygiene and sanitation and barriers to accessing healthcare, it spreads more easily.
If you think you have Shigella, you're encouraged to get tested at a local clinic. If you test positive, the county said you may be able to stay in a hotel for free while recovering.