Homeless

A typical Charlotte summer day with a high near 90 degrees is not classified as extreme heat, that's reserved for “abnormal” temperatures. Unhoused people, however, experience these temperatures differently since they are often outside all day, unable to cool off.

People who live outside in unstable housing are vulnerable to any kind of weather — storms, floods, temperature changes. WFAE followed street outreach workers to see how they help people survive outside during the summer.

Saturday marks the one-year anniversary for the Supreme Court’s landmark Grants Pass v. Johnson decision, which solidified a local government’s right to ban the unhoused from camping on public property.

Federal law grants students experiencing homelessness a right to extra support and protections. Advocates say President Trump's proposed budget would strip that law of its power.

President Trump has ordered a Veterans Affairs campus in West Los Angeles to house 6,000 homeless vets by 2028, but details are elusive.

A federal program provides extra help to make sure students experiencing homelessness get an education. Amid massive cuts to the federal government, the program's future is uncertain.

Teams of volunteers braved freezing temperatures early Thursday to survey people in Mecklenburg County experiencing homelessness. In uptown Charlotte, volunteers encountered a man on a sidewalk who had died.

Homeless shelters in Mecklenburg County will make room for additional beds and people ahead of extremely cold temperatures Sunday night through Wednesday.

The annual federal count finds more than 770,000 people living in shelters or outside. It cites rising rents and the recent surge in migrants as key factors behind the increase.

Three months into the job, Gaston County Manager Matt Rhoten is eliminating a department that coordinated homeless outreach and opioid response efforts. He says the cuts will save $1.4 million, and residents "shouldn't see anything different."