Guardian Angels patrol subway as extreme cold puts unhoused New Yorkers at risk
As temperatures remain dangerously low, outreach workers and volunteers say continued vigilance is critical to preventing further loss of life.
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As dangerously low temperatures grip New York City, some people experiencing homelessness are entering the subways to stay warm.
Volunteers with the Guardian Angels have been patrolling the Coney Island–Stillwell Avenue subway station in search of those in need.
News 12 followed a crew as they encountered two men seeking warmth and medical help.
What began as a brief check-in quickly turned into an emergency when volunteers found a man complaining of severe pain throughout his body.
Guardian Angels patrol leader Jose Gonzalez called 911.
"He's saying he has pains all over the body, especially the chest," Gonzalez told emergency responders.
Minutes later, another man experiencing homelessness asked the group for help finding a warm place to stay.
"If it doesn't tug on your heartstrings, if you don't get emotional, you're not human," Gonzalez said.
According to the Guardian Angels, the past week has been especially difficult as frigid temperatures have driven more people onto trains.
"They use the trains to get warm," Gonzalez said.
New York City remains under a Code Blue, which relaxes certain rules to make it easier for people to access shelter during extreme cold.
Despite those measures, three people have died outdoors in Brooklyn in the past week, and 10 people citywide, according to officials.
Those deaths are why volunteers like the Guardian Angels have been walking subway trains for hours at a time, distributing food and water and calling for help when necessary.
"It's good to give a sandwich and water," Gonzalez said. "But we wish we could do even more."
In this case, "more" meant waiting with the two men in below-freezing temperatures.
More than an hour passed after calls were placed to both 911 and 311, with no immediate response.
"We wait, and we wait. We've waited many hours," Gonzalez said.
After a station manager intervened, emergency responders arrived nearly 90 minutes after the initial 911 call.
The man experiencing the medical emergency was taken away in an ambulance.
The second man, tired of waiting for help, left with a friend.
As temperatures remain dangerously low, outreach workers and volunteers say continued vigilance is critical to preventing further loss of life.
