California’s devastating winter storms have killed at least two unhoused people, deaths that call attention to the grave risks extreme weather poses to more than 116,000 people living outdoors in the state.
Both deaths occurred in Sacramento, which endured winds of 60mph (96.5km/h) over the weekend and saw thousands of people lose power. Rebekah Rohde, 40, died after a falling tree crashed into her tent along the American River on Saturday. Steven Sorensen, 61, died on Sunday when a tree fell on his tent next to a light rail station.
Across California at least 15 people have died since the storms began last week, bringing torrential rain and wind that has flooded rivers, knocked down trees and power lines and forced the evacuation of tens of thousands of people. Joe Biden has declared an emergency in the state, where officials have opened shelters “to support the most vulnerable Californians”.
Unhoused people from San Francisco to San Diego have been weathering the brutal storm outdoors or taking to temporary shelters as state and local officials face pressure to protect people from the dangerous conditions. Last week, San Jose ordered unhoused people living near creeks to evacuate due to flooding risks. In the city of Ontario, east of Los Angeles, officials have offered hotel vouchers to unhoused people living near river washes – three people living outside died in floodwaters there during a November storm.
Sacramento county has seen more deaths than any other in the state with five confirmed fatalities, according to the governor’s office of emergency services. Three of the dead were found in submerged vehicles after a New Year’s Eve storm. Rain and wind has continued to batter the region, leaving fallen trees and dropped branches across the city.
The dangers to unhoused people during the latest bout of extreme weather are particularly acute, warned Bob Erlenbusch, the executive director of the Sacramento Regional Coalition to End Homelessness, a non-profit advocacy group.
“It’s horrifying. You’ve got 7,000 people or more trying to survive the rain and high winds. The little survival gear they have – it gets blown away pretty easily,” he said. “People get wet, their belongings get wet. These are really difficult conditions.”
The city has sent outreach workers to encampments to advise unhoused people to move their tents away from levees at risk of flooding and is providing free transportation to the warming centers it has opened. “We have space for you,” the city’s mayor, Darrell Steinberg, said on Sunday in a video outside on the of the centers.
“An unsheltered woman lost her life last night along the American River. That’s terrible. It’s tragic and we need to do everything we can to make sure there’s no further loss of life,” the mayor said.
Meanwhile, local advocates are scrambling to get those living on the streets crucial supplies such as blankets, coats, sleeping bags and sand bags, and encouraging people to go to warming centers. But there are less than 1,000 spaces available in warming centers, the Sacramento Bee reported, and only 2,300 total shelter beds in the county, which has seen an unprecedented rise in homelessness in recent years.
The number of unhoused residents in the city has has risen by nearly 70% since 2019. At least 9,278 people are estimated to be without a home, the majority of whom sleep outdoors, many in tents along levees, or in vehicles.
Weather-related deaths of unhoused people are on the rise in Sacramento, said Erlenbusch whose organization tracks the deaths of people experiencing homelessness in the area. Eight unhoused people froze to death in the city last year. “Up until last year we didn’t have weather related deaths. It’s sadly becoming the new normal,” he said.
The extreme weather has not stopped cities from cracking down on unhoused populations. San Francisco is allegedly still sweeping homeless encampments in violation of a court order. Last week, Sacramento was reportedly towing RVs leaving unhoused people without any shelter at all, Erlenbusch said.
With more rain in the forecast, Erlenbusch said he fears for the city’s unhoused residents.
“I hope outreach workers are reminding people don’t put your belongings in your tent under what appears to be a big tree. People getting soaked to the bone can get pneumonia and die. I hope people stay safe.”
