How homeless outreach is fanning out in Myrtle Beach to find needy in coronavirus wake
Ashley Huntsman traveled to Myrtle Beach four days ago looking for work, but as coronavirus has forced the closure of businesses, she’s stuck here with a broken-down car living in the woods.
Myrtle Beach police officers and representatives for Eastern Carolina Housing Organization found Huntsman in a tent deep in a wooded area near Coastal Grand Mall while doing outreach, handing out needed supplies and trying to educate the area’s large unsheltered homeless population on how to limit their chances of contracting COVID-19.
New Directions of Horry County, which operates the area’s only homeless shelters, isn’t accepting any new clients despite some open beds at its men’s shelter, executive director Kathy Jenkins said, because they’re trying to follow recommended spacing guidelines and limiting potential exposure to staff and current clients.
Huntsman, 33, told officers she was living in the tent with her boyfriend, daughter and daughter’s boyfriend and had tried to get help from various organizations, but was shut out because she had a bad cough, though she insisted she didn’t need any medical attention.
“People look at me like I’m disgusting,” she said, noting she’s been homeless most of her life.
Huntsman’s attitude quickly turned positive when Joey Smoak, ECHO’s executive director, told her he could get them into a hotel for at least a few nights.
She was on the verge of tears and “tickled pink,” she explained, because she hadn’t had an opportunity to shower in weeks.
ECHO representatives began Thursday morning at Community Kitchen, handing out bags of supplies including snacks, sanitary wipes and socks.
Kyle Jenkins, ECHO’s chief operating officer, gave tips to those waiting in line, including avoiding touching their face, not sharing cigarettes and sleeping at least six feet apart.
He explained that unsheltered homeless are highly at risk for contracting COVID-19 because they don’t have easy access to cleaning supplies or healthcare, and often huddle together at night for warmth.
If a homeless person gets coronavirus in Myrtle Beach, it will spread rapidly among that population and put others that interact with them at risk, he said.
After breakfast ended at Community Kitchen, officers led Smoak and Jenkins to some well-known homeless encampments around the city in hopes of handing out more bags of supplies.
The encampments had mostly cleared, though clothes, empty bottles and other trash covered the ground in those areas. Smoak suggested they return earlier in the morning another day to continue their efforts.
Jenkins said they plan to pursue similar efforts in Conway and unincorporated areas of Horry County during the coming days and weeks.
