Blanchet House hands out water bottles to homeless Portlanders as heat climbs

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – As temperatures rise and concern grows for people living on the street, a downtown Portland soup kitchen aims to protect those most vulnerable in the heat.

Blanchet House, stationed in Old Town, hands out water bottles and trains their staff to know of the signs of heat-related illnesses.

They say the Joint Office of Homeless Services supplied them with more than 1,000 water bottles, which they keep on ice or help refill. They also accept bottle donations.

According to Blanchett House’s Jon Seibert, people living on the streets are particularly vulnerable when the forecast changes – even if the temperatures seem just a little hotter.

“Especially this early in the year, you know, people aren't necessarily acclimated to it. A lot of the guests that we serve if they're dealing with mental health crisis or substance use, you know, hydration is not going to be the first thing on their mind if they're in crisis,” Seibert said. “There's going to be other things that [they] are thinking about so one of the things that we need to do is make sure that we're checking in with people.”

Seibert said Portland's heat islands can exacerbate these issues as well.