BUTTE — As the temperature grows colder in Butte, the number of people using Butte’s homeless shelter grows larger.
“There’s been a huge amount of people coming to us in need of help,” said shelter director Brayton Erickson.
The Butte Rescue Mission’s shelter expects to see more people as the temperature dips below zero. The shelter is able to serve long-term residents as well as people who need an emergency overnight stay to escape the cold.
The shelter has since an uptick in clients from out of town this summer mainly due to the coronavirus.
“There’s people moving around from higher population areas to get away from some of those restrictions, so we’ve seen some of that over the summer, and we have food, shelter, and clothing, so if you’re in a tight spot maybe you got laid off from work and need help, we can help,” said Erickson.
Part of the shelter is usually only open for emergency overnight stays, but if the temperature stays below 10 degrees throughout the day, they’re going to keep it open throughout the day so people can come in and keep warm.
“The elements can be dangerous, especially this weekend, It’s supposed to be 15 below and it doesn’t take very long to get frostbite in that weather,” said Erickson.
This shelter, which just opened last year, says it really needs donations of warm clothing and money to help keep the lights and the heat on and people can donate at the Butte Rescue Mission website.
