5 people have died in Salt Lake City during recent freezing conditions; Mayor orders more beds for homeless shelters
Mendenhall made the announcement Tuesday, ordering all shelters to increase capacity by 25 beds. However, the mayor acknowledged it could take weeks before the beds are actually available to those who need them.
Mendenhall said the medical examiner is currently investigating the deaths of the five unsheltered people who died in the last week. "It's completely reasonable for us to assume that the exposure that they've endured was a factor in the tragic deaths," the mayor said. Over the past week, as temperatures dipped into the teens and 20s, local shelters have operated at near capacity.
Before the recent frigid temperatures, there was an average of 109 beds available each night in city's shelter system.
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