NEWS RELEASE
Contact: Human Services
Frank Lawrence, South Wilmington Street Center Manager, 919-508-0718
Dara Demi, Communications Director, 919-210-5621
Wake County Communications Office After Hours
919-737-WAKE
wakegov.com/news
Date: Jan. 4, 2016
FREEZING TEMPERATURES TONIGHT
TRIGGER WHITE FLAG EVENT IN WAKE COUNTY
Local shelters will provide warm lodging for homeless men, women and children
A white flag is flying outside five Wake County shelters tonight, signaling that they offer
homeless people a warm, safe place to sleep for the night as forecasters predict
temperatures will dip below freezing. The shelters will not turn anyone away even if they
are at capacity.
The sites are located in Raleigh at:
Location
The South Wilmington Street
Center
Healing Transitions
Raleigh Rescue Mission
Salvation Army
Helen Wright Center for Women
Address
1420 S. Wilmington St.
Contact
919-857-9428
3310 Glen Royal Rd.
314 E. Hargett St.
1863 Capital Blvd.
401 West Cabarrus St.
919-838-9800
919-828-9014
919-834-6733
919-833-1748
All men seeking shelter should first contact the South Wilmington Street Center for
referral. Women with children should contact The Salvation Army. Women with or without
children may contact the Raleigh Rescue Mission.
The White Flag System is implemented when one of two situations occurs:
 The temperature is predicted to be 32 degrees Fahrenheit or below between 6
p.m. and 6 a.m; or
 There is heavy or steady precipitation with temperatures forecasted to reach 38
degrees Fahrenheit or below between 6 p.m. and 6 a.m.
On average, more than 1,000 people are homeless each night in Wake County, and
thousands more are staying with other families and are at risk of homelessness. The
South Wilmington Street Center alone accommodated 87,599 overnight stays for
homeless individuals in 2015.
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