How to access a warming centers in Philadelphia

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- The City of Philadelphia is in an extended code blue, which means more resources specifically for the most vulnerable.

On Tuesday, people along Kelly Drive continued as normal -- jogging and biking in the freezing temperatures.

Vernon Boyer worked clearing snow and dropping salt on icy patches around Lloyd Hall on Kelly Drive.

Boyer's advice: "Stay busy & keep working!"

We asked commuters how they were braving the chilly workday.

Jarrell Eaddy of South Philadelphia said, "I put on two extra hoodies and extra jacket. It's really cold outside."

David Krestynick of Conshohocken, "I was definitely not prepared for today. Frankly, I'm OK. I'm decent in the cold."

The dangerously low digits prompted the city and surrounding counties to declare a code blue.

In Philadelphia, Managing Director Adam Thiel announced a new initiative that includes 20 warming centers in every council district.

"This expanded warming center initiative was an all-hands response by many city departments," explained Thiel.

He clarified that while warming centers are 24/7, hours vary at each location.

"We are providing this working center service 24/7 for the duration of this event what that means is sometimes the daytime hours are in a different place than the nighttime hours for programming and staffing reasons. That's all explained in the various websites talking about this," he said.

Inside the Juniata Older Adult Center, which will serve as a location, Rose Bell said when she's not staying with family, it's a needed alternative.

"If you didn't have the option of a warming center what would your day be like?" asked Action News' Annie McCormick.

Bell said, "I would go to the library or supermarket someplace to keep warm."

PECO is reporting a small amount of outages due to the cold weather and they urged customers to follow tips to conserve and better insulate.

How to Access a Warming Center

-Find a Warming Center location online here.

-Walk into any Warming Center.

-Call the City's Homeless Street Outreach Team at (215) 232-1984.

Additional Resources

How to access a shelter bed: Call the Homeless Street Outreach Team at (215) 232-1984 or walk into any City-funded intake center.

Where to find a food site: Find a nearby site for free groceries and/or prepacked boxes of food phila.gov/food.