Warming Center Initiative to continue in effort to keep Philadelphians inside and warm
PHILADELPHIA – The Code Blue that Office of Homeless Services (OHS) declared on Thursday, January 2, 2025, will continue indefinitely due to forecasts of continued extremely cold weather.
The City of Philadelphia launched a Warming Center Initiative to make sure no Philadelphian would be left out in the cold during a Code Blue or Snow Emergency declaration. There is a warming center in every Councilmanic district and nearly every city neighborhood.
Since the Warming Center Initiative rollout:
- More than 8,000 people have taken advantage of the warming centers.
- The Philadelphia Department of Public Health (PDPH) has distributed a total of 739 warming kits to people they’ve encountered living on the street.
- Each warming kit contains: one hat, a pair of fleece gloves, two pairs of socks, two pairs of hand warmers, one emergency mylar blanket, one lip balm, one pack of hand/body wipes, one bottle of hand sanitizer, and one adult poncho.
- The teams have also distributed 105 backpacks and 475 fleece blankets.
- OHS opened an additional 150 Code Blue shelter beds to in anticipation of increased need.
Anyone who needs to get in out of the cold may walk into a warming center, whether they are experiencing homelessness or lost power and heat at home. A list of warming centers is available at <https://bit.ly/WarmingCtrs>.
To get help for someone who is living outside in the cold, the City’s Homeless Street Outreach Team, which has specially trained staff members — some with lived experience with homelessness — is available at (215) 232-1984.
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About the Warming Center Initiative
The Warming Center Initiative opens warming centers during a Code Blue or Snow Emergency declaration. Anyone who needs a warm indoor place to stay may visit a warming center or daytime drop-in center, where food is also available. They may also call the Department of Behavioral Health and Intellectual DisAbility’s Homeless Street Outreach Team at (215) 232-1984 to get a ride to one. The Warming Center Initiative is a partnership of the Office of Homeless Services and several City departments including the Philadelphia Parks and Recreation Department, the Free Library of Philadelphia, and provider partner, Project HOME.
About The Office of Homeless Services
The mission of the Office of Homeless Services (OHS) is to make homelessness rare, brief, and non-recurring. OHS works with more than 70 homeless housing and service providers, as well as city, state, and federal government. This system provides homelessness prevention and diversion aid, along with emergency and temporary housing, to people who are experiencing homelessness and those at risk of homelessness.