In Midst Of Homeless Crisis, Thousands Of Beds Go Unused Every Night
A KPCC investigation safety and sanitation problems in shelters around LA county, including bedbugs, rats, and lax medical care.
KPCC:
Rats, Roaches, Bedbugs, Mold: Why Thousands Of LA's Homeless Shelter Beds Sit Empty Each Night
A KPCC investigation found reports of bedbugs, rats, foul odors, poor lighting, harassment, lax care in medical wards and even a “chicken incubator” in a room where homeless people were sleeping. Public documents — including monitoring reports from the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority (LAHSA), health department inspections, coroner reports, surveys from the Department of Mental Health and police reports — reveal safety and sanitation problems in shelters around the county. (Palta, 5/9)
In other news —
Orange County Register:
60 Former Riverbed And Civic Center Homeless To Be Treated, Housed Under New $1.6 Million Contract
Sixty of the most vulnerable homeless people recently dislodged from the Santa Ana Civic Center and riverbed tent cities will be targeted to be moved into permanent housing under a new $1.6 million contract approved Tuesday, May 8, by the Orange County Board of Supervisors. The program will focus on treating and housing homeless people suffering from drug-abuse problems and mental illness – a group Supervisor Todd Spitzer called the “most difficult of the difficult” to help. (Graham, 5/8)