Help for homeless amid dangerous heat

Catholic Action Center now offering showers twice a week through August as temperatures soar

LEXINGTON, Ky. (ABC 36 NEWS NOW) – The extreme summer weather is beating down on the Bluegrass, and while many Kentuckians work to stay cool, officials say the heat poses a serious danger to those experiencing homelessness.

“Heat stroke can happen very quickly,” said Ginny Ramsey, director and co-founder of The Catholic Action Center. “People who aren’t able to get the food, the water, it takes them eating as well as drinking to stop them from being dehydrated. So we always with the Compassion Caravan, the Dignity Station, give people food as well as water, but they need the fluids,” said Ramsey.

Ramsey says Lexington is facing a critical homelessness situation. In response to this week’s dangerous heat, the Catholic Action Center is now offering showers twice a week for the homeless.

Kimberly Bottom, a member of the center’s Street Voice Council, says a shower can make a major difference.

“A shower could mean a job interview, that could mean getting a job, could mean getting a place to stay, even if it’s at Saint James,” said Bottom. “I mean it could get you somewhere, and I think that that’s really helpful,” said Bottom.

And even at night, the danger isn’t over, as humidity stick around even after the sun goes down.

“Their core temperature gets high, it’s not going to go down when they sleep outside at 78,” Ramsey said. “They need fluids, they need food, they’ve got to be able to have the basic necessities, or this can be as deadly as the coldest of winter times,” said Ramsey.

Ramsey says the Catholic Action Center’s Dignity Station will now be open for showers on Wednesdays and Fridays, continuing through August 22.