Caritas adds 70 emergency beds for winter in Vienna

Caritas is launching its winter aid in Vienna, adding 70 emergency accommodation places and expanding street outreach as temperatures fall, ORF reports. The measures begin on Wednesday, October 28, Caritas director Klaus Schwertner said on Monday.

The Caritas cold-weather hotline will also reopen. It will be available around the clock, seven days a week, at 01/480 4553. Members of the public can report where they have seen people sleeping rough, and Caritas street teams will follow up as soon as possible.

The teams provide information about support services, distribute sleeping bags, warm clothing, hygiene products and hot drinks, and help people find a warm place to sleep in an emergency shelter. Caritas said the additional 70 places were set up at two locations in cooperation with the Vienna Social Fund.

Caritas provides 1,890 places year-round in emergency shelters, residential homes and supported mobile housing, as well as advice and meals. Last winter, the cold-weather hotline received more than 15,500 calls, and 490 people experiencing acute homelessness were referred to emergency accommodation, according to Caritas.

Schwertner urged the public to support people without homes during the cold months, saying donations help provide sleeping bags, winter clothing and hot meals. Caritas project manager and street worker Susanne Peter encouraged people to save the hotline number and call if they see someone outdoors in the cold.