Homeless Heat Alert: The Miami-Dade County Homeless Trust Activates Life-Saving Excessive Heat Response Plan for Unsheltered Individuals

The Miami-Dade County Homeless Trust is activating its extreme heat strategy today with a myriad of protective measures to help people experiencing homelessness manage excessively high temperatures. In partnership with Miami-Dade County’s Office of Resilience and Miami-Dade’s Department of Emergency Management, the following measures are in place:

• Homeless outreach teams will be wearing Red Heat Alert T-shirts as a visual cue to unsheltered persons that temperatures have reached dangerous levels.
• Outreach teams will provide people experiencing homelessness with extreme heat supplies seeking to meet their immediate heat-related needs. Supplies include water, gaiters, cooling towels, ice packs, sunscreen, electrolytes, hats and other relief supplies.
• Vulnerable individuals are being directed to cooling center locations like libraries, community centers and parks. Homeless Trust-contracted providers like Miami Rescue Mission will also extend hours to provide additional cooling center locations.
• Continuum of Care providers are trained by Miami-Dade County to recognize the signs of heat-related illnesses and access emergency services if clients exhibit symptoms of heat-related illnesses.

While more than 8,000 people are housed in the Trust’s Continuum of Care, the 858 unhoused individuals remain the focus of the Trust’s 2025 coordinated response. Last year, the Trust through its providers, distributed more than 30,500 water bottles, 2,000 electrolyte packs, 1,240 gaiter face coverings, 1,090 cooling towels, as well as hats and sunscreen to the estimated 1,030 unsheltered homeless living in Miami-Dade County.

“The Miami-Dade County Homeless Trust and its Continuum of Care partners stand prepared to address the dangerous heat conditions expected today and occur on and off throughout the summer. These are conditions that pose serious threats to the health and safety of our unsheltered population,” said Ron Book, chairman, Miami-Dade County Homeless Trust. "We are well equipped for excessive heat efforts thanks to early collaboration with the Office of Resilience and Miami-Dade’s Department of Emergency Management. Additionally, past on-the-ground experience responding to extreme heat conditions have helped us hone our strategies and galvanize critical community support.”

Dozens of for-profit businesses and nonprofit organizations have stepped up to donate critical supplies—such as bottled water, electrolyte packs, and cooling kits—to help keep clients hydrated during extreme heat. Hydration plays a key role in regulating body temperature and preventing life-threatening conditions like heatstroke and seizures, reducing the need for emergency service calls among our unsheltered neighbors.

This is the third year the Trust has implemented extreme heat activations on the streets of Miami-Dade County. Bulk donations of water and other heat-health products (sunscreen, cooling towels, first aid kits, water) are welcome. Contact the Homeless Trust at 305-375-1490 for more details.