'Tents ain't doing enough': Homeless people forced to sleep on ice as Multnomah County warming centers remain closed

PORTLAND, Ore. — With Multnomah County closing its warming centers on Wednesday, Thursday’s freezing rain made a difficult situation worse.

Homeless people walk in the middle of the street to avoid icy sidewalks. A line wraps around the block of Blanchet House in Old Town, as people wait to pick out donated winter coats. Others carry tents, tarps and MREs they got from warming centers before they closed on Wednesday. 

“It’s miserable. I feel like grime,” Jacob, who’s homeless, told KGW. 

Multnomah County closed its warming centers because the emergency shelter thresholds were not met. Those include when temperatures are 25 degrees or below, one inch or more of snow, and or 32 degrees or below with at least one inch of driving rain overnight.

Multnomah County has since declared a “cold weather advisory” to expand outreach and hand out tents. Warming centers will remain closed.

County Chair Jessica Vega Pederson told KGW in an email that "The fact that we supported a record 1,300 people in a record 12 buildings over five days of 24-hour shelter — along with expanded outreach and other measures on days and nights when thresholds aren’t met — is proof that we’re deeply committed to improving our processes, partnerships and performance. 

"Taken together, this is a system designed to support people through every night of the year, including the most life-threatening," she continued.

But Jacob, who slept in a soaking wet tent and sleeping bag on the ice Wednesday night, begs to differ: “Tents ain’t doing enough."

“That’s pretty rotten. I mean, a lot of people are dispersed and displaced,” said Tommy, another unhoused resident.

RELATED: With warming shelters closed, many homeless people in Portland fear freezing to death

Tommy and Jacob are now left to rely on the few open day centers like Rose Haven.

“This morning, we’ve had people who have been outside all night, showing up here, looking for resources for tonight, and it’s been really, really challenging,” said Katie O’Brien, Rose Haven’s executive director. 

“We’ve contacted the city and the county looking for additional beds. We called 211 last night; they had no beds available for anybody. There just aren’t the resources,” she continued. 

For three hours on Thursday, the county opened three places for people to get cold weather gear.

“I think this is indicative of a much greater problem. We shouldn’t be scrambling like this in inclement weather. It is winter in Oregon — these beds should be available all the time, all year round,” O’Brien said.

However, there is one silver lining: The city of Portland extended the pause on camp removals through at least Friday.

“It’s hard for people out here trying to do the right thing and trying to stay sober and trying to better their life, and they’re not getting the opportunity to do so,” Jacob said. 

KGW asked the city if they could open emergency shelters on their own, and they said it’s not their call to make; the city said it waits for the county to make those decisions and are prepared to help out when they do.