The Bellevue Men’s Shelter in NYC has been exposed hours after Mayor Bill de Blasio bragged about his office’s ability to get the homeless off the streets and into shelters.
It’s being reported that the shelter is full of mask-less men curling up in close proximity on a staircase or on the floor inches from others during a global pandemic. The shelter is overcrowded and men are sleeping on makeshift cardboard beds.
“They’re forcing these guys off the train to go here and staff at the single men’s intake is overrun and these guys won’t get a bed in a lot of cases so they’re forced to sleep on the stairs and such, which causes tension and unrest from being so close,” fumed a Department of Homeless Services police officer.
“As you can see, this is not social distancing.”
The officer added the homeless are being threatened with “handcuffs” or the “psych ward” by the NYPD if they don’t immediately comply and agree to go to a shelter.
The conditions are now under investigation by the mayor’s office with spokesman Avery Cohen calling the situation “absolutely unacceptable.”
The Bellevue shelter is the initial intake center for homeless male adults seeking a place to sleep.
“Even during our coldest months of winter, the shelters don’t look like this,” an anonymous officer told The Post.
“The beds that are extra at the men’s intake are reserved for overages for other shelters. Even a shelter that’s supposed to house 200 men can have on some days 10 to up to 25 [more than that].”
Do you think the mayor is handling the homeless situation in NYC correctly?
