For immediate release
Friday, January 19, 2024
Media contact: Kristen Alice, Director of Community Relations
Cell: 808-938-7239
HOPE Services Statement on Hilo bus terminal sweep
Today HOPE Services Hawaiʻi responded to a homeless sweep initiated by the Department of Land and Natural Resources at the bus terminal and adjacent fence line located in downtown Hilo. Our Outreach team was made aware of the impending sweep two days ago, and immediately diverted their attention and resources to assisting our houseless community members residing at and around the bus terminal.
HOPE Services Hawaiʻi stands firmly in support of our houseless community’s right to compassionate treatment. We work to help people get off the streets and into permanent housing. Sweeps are counterproductive to this goal, breaking connections between clients and service providers, breaking up communities, scattering people throughout the community, and even putting them in grave danger. According to the National Alliance to End Homelessness, “…homelessness drops one’s average life expectancy to 50 years of age, down from a non-homeless average of about 78 years. Homeless people are more likely than others to experience injury and interpersonal violence…”
With that said, here are some Questions and Answers about our response to today’s sweep.
How many people were displaced? Where are they now?
- When our team visited yesterday and Wednesday, they encountered 19 people at the bus terminal.
- 5 informed us that they were leaving the site but staying in the Hilo Bayfront area.
- When we arrived just before 7:00 this morning, we encountered 13 people.
- We assisted 10 people into our shelters today
What happened to the belongings of the people displaced by the sweep?
- Most people took as many of their belongings as they could carry, and we assisted with transporting the belongings of some of the people entering our shelter. Hawaiʻi Police Department Community Policing officers offered to store items for 30 days, but no one accepted. The items remaining at the site of the sweep were discarded.
Where did you provide shelter for people displaced by the sweep?
- We did have some spaces in our existing shelters. We manage seven shelters in Hilo, Pahoa, and Kailua-Kona with 168 shelter beds 24 hours, 7 days a week.
- In order to increase bed space to accommodate all those who wanted shelter, we repurposed our Covid isolation/quarantine facility to a temporary shelter. As a result, we have no isolation facility to quarantine any residents who test positive in our congregate shelter spaces.
What are the impacts of a sweep on HOPEʻs work and our community?
- In a situation where we donʻt have adequate space, resources, or staffing, taking in more people than we have room for stretches all of these resources thin and creates a crowded, high-tension, environment. Additionally, overcrowding shelters make the spread of disease more likely.
- The urgency of the Hilo situation diverted our Outreach team’s attention from other parts of the island.
There have been tragic incidents affecting our houseless community in Hilo recently. Can you comment?
- We do not want to comment on the specifics of any incidents, because they are personal and complex journeys.
What are the next steps Hope Services is taking to continue to improve the health of our community?
- We are seeking a licensed therapist to join our team as we continue to increase our behavioral healthcare capacity. Go to hopeserviceshawaii.org to learn more. Join our team!
- For people who are unaware they are a danger to themselves and others but need to access treatment, we are launching a new program, called Assisted Community Treatment (ACT). This will allow mental health providers to provide care to people incapable of making informed decisions about their own care and well-being.
- An Integrated Care Hub (ICH) serves as a place for rest, recovery, and connection to community resources, for houseless patients with acute medical conditions.
How can the community help our neighbors experiencing homelessness?
- We invite you to come get to know what we do. Be a volunteer, or better yet, apply for one of our 18 job openings available today! We have three openings in the Hilo Outreach Team. Visit us at hopeserviceshawaii.org to learn more.
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