Cold overnight temperatures continue across Central Florida this week, with temperatures expected to drop into the 30s Wednesday night and into the 20s on Saturday and Sunday nights. Warming shelters are available for those in need.
Check here for the latest shelter information available from the Homeless Services Network of Central Florida.
Brevard
In Brevard County, Matthew's Hope opens at 4 p.m. as a freezing shelter for unhoused people, beginning Monday and for each following day as long as temperatures remain very cold. The shelter is at 825 Forrest Ave., Cocoa.
The Sharing Center of Central Brevard at 113 Aurora St., Cocoa, will open at 6 p.m. and serve dinner and breakfast.
Through Friday, Melbourne First Church of the Nazarene will open a cold-night shelter each night, starting at 5:30 p.m. Dinner and breakfast will be served. The church is at 2745 S. Babcock St., Melbourne.
LifePointe Ministries, Inc. will open at 5:30 p.m. at 4220 South Hopkins Ave., Titusville. Dinner and breakfast will be served.
Lake
Lake County has an overnight shelter at LifePointe Church in Eustis and a daytime warming center at the Salvation Army in Leesburg.
LifePointe Church is at 3551 E. Orange Ave. It will open at 5 p.m. on Wednesday and Thursday and close at 7 a.m. the following day.
LakeXpress, the County’s fixed-route bus service, will provide free transportation to the shelter.
The Salvation Army’s daytime warming center is at 2605 South St. and is open from 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.
County residents can receive cold-weather updates by texting COLD to 888-777.
Orange
At 5 p.m. on Wednesday, Orange County will reopen the gyms at Barnett Park Recreation Center and Goldenrod Recreation Center as temporary warming centers. They will close at 9 a.m. Thursday and remain closed until 5 p.m. Saturday, when they’ll reopen and remain open continuously through 10 a.m. Monday.
LYNX buses provide free transportation to warming centers.
For residents in rural East Orange County, Bithlo Community Park will continue serving as a transportation hub, providing bus service to the Goldenrod Recreation Center at 5:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday.
Residents in suburban East Orange County can go to the Samaritan Resource Center for free bus service to a warming center. Pick-ups are at 4:30 p.m. on each day warming centers are open.
“Secured pets are welcome on LYNX buses and at the warming centers,” according to Orange County’s website. “Pet owners must provide carriers for cats, leashes for dogs, and are responsible for bringing food and supplies.”
Orange County announced Wednesday afternoon it would be closing temporary warming centers for Thursday and Friday, in light of updated weather forecasts showing temperatures will not drop below 40°F for at least four consecutive hours. Check here for future cold-weather updates.
There are also other shelters open in the county. The Homeless Services Network of Central Florida provided this list:
- Coalition for the Homeless, 18 N. Terry Ave., Orlando
- Matthew’s Hope, 611 Business Park Blvd., Winter Garden
- Orlando Union Rescue Mission, 3300 W. Colonial Drive, Orlando
- The Salvation Army Orlando (Men Only), 624 Lexington Ave., Orlando
- The Salvation Army Orlando (Women and Children Only), 400 W. Colonial Drive, Orlando
Osceola
Osceola County announced three shelters:
- First United Methodist Church St. Cloud, 1000 Ohio Ave., St. Cloud.
- Iglesia Del Nazareno Casa De Vida, 2367 Fortune Road, Kissimmee.
- Poinciana Christian Church, 3181 Pleasant Hill Road, Kissimmee.
All three shelters will open at 6 p.m. on Wednesday and close at 7 a.m. on Thursday.
The shelter at First United Methodist Church will also reopen at 6 p.m. on Saturday, closing at 7 a.m. on Sunday. Plans to open more locations on Saturday night are also in the works.
“Those needing transportation to the shelter location can travel at no cost using LYNX buses by alerting drivers that they will be going to the cold weather shelter,” according to the Osceola County news release. “Pets are housed at Osceola Animal Services during the operation. Animals will need to be in a carrier before they board, unless they are a service dog.”
Residents can sign up for alerts by texting COLDWEATHER to 888777.
Seminole
The Homeless Services Network of Central Florida lists two warming shelters in Seminole County. Both locations will open on Wednesday, Thursday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday nights:
- Rescue Outreach Mission, 1701 Historic Goldsboro Blvd., Sanford
- First United Methodist Church of Sanford, 419 S. Park Ave., Sanford
All Seminole County library branches will be open as daytime warming centers from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Friday, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, and from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday.
Volusia
Volusia County announced a refuge at The Bridge in DeLand, located at 421 S. Palmetto Ave. Wednesday through Saturday, guests are welcome each night beginning at 6:30 p.m. Breakfast will be provided each morning before the shelter closes at approximately 8 a.m. For more information, Volusia residents can contact the Neighborhood Center at (386) 734-8120, ext. 601.
In east Volusia, Halifax Urban Ministries is arranging shelter with local churches. For residents in need of transportation, the county advises getting in touch with HUM as early as possible by calling 386-317-5886.
