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Hernando Today

Cold Weather Options For Homeless

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By LINNEA BROWN, Hernando Today

Published: December 17, 2007

BROOKSVILLE - With a much-anticipated cold front finally touching Hernando County, local officials are making sure homeless residents have options to stay warm.

If needed, the Hernando County Health and Human Services department has two local cold weather and disaster shelters ready for residents who are without adequate heat or shelter.

Officials issued a freeze warning and wind chill advisory Sunday night into Monday morning for Citrus, Levy, Sumter and Hernando counties, along with a freeze watch tonight into Tuesday morning.

Temperatures were expected to dip to 32 degrees or colder from 3 a.m. to 9 a.m. this morning and remain breezy and cold for the remainder of the day.

The shelters are at New Beginnings Life Center, located at 3350 Commercial Way in Spring Hill, and the Jerome Brown Community Center, located at Tom Varn Park in Brooksville.

Residents may stay at the shelters from 6 p.m. to 8 a.m., unless the severity of the cold weather deems shelter hours be extended. The shelters will close if no one requires shelter by midnight.

As of Sunday at 6 p.m., official word had not come from the parks director or city manager to prepare shelter facilities for Sunday night at the community center.

However, Louis Bermudez, program coordinator for recreation programs at Jerome Brown, said he wouldn't be surprised if the call came today to have the shelter ready for tonight's equally chilling temperatures.

"As soon as we get a cold front, we'll put a sign on the door with an (appropriate phone number to call) and set up for it," he said.

Officials keep rations such as sleeping mats, blankets and food in storage, and bring these items out for potential guests when severe weather arrives. Maintenance workers are instructed to let people into the center who need shelter.

"It's a community service," Bermudez said. "We see people who are not doing well going through the park, and sometimes we catch them sleeping in the bathrooms at night. Hernando County definitely needs some kind of shelter (for them)."

Since the shelter had not technically been activated for Sunday night, Bermudez said police would probably call community center officials if people were found waiting outside or in need of a place to stay.

The area's freeze watch was expected to remain in place through Tuesday morning, with temperatures warming back up by Thursday. More rain is expected Friday.

A high surf advisory was also issued Sunday for costal areas of Pasco, Pinellas, Hillsborough, Manatee and Sarasota counties, with warnings of rough surf and rip currents through Monday.

In Brooksville, Sunday's cold front generated strong early-morning thunderstorms and heavy winds.

In Pasco County, a tornado destroyed two annex structures of the Land O' Lakes jail around 5 a.m. Sunday, forcing more than 200 inmates to evacuate. The main prison building's roof also sustained damage, and both the jail and thousands of Pasco County residents lost power.

For more detailed shelter information, call Health and Human Services at 352-540-4338 or Emergency Management at 352-754-4083.

Reporter Linnea Brown can be reached at 352-544-5289 or lbrown@hernandotoday.com.

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