With deadly low temperatures on way, Santa Fe activates 'Code Blue'

Dec. 22—State health officials are advising people to stay inside and dress in warm layers in response to the frigid temperatures and below-zero wind chills expected to hit New Mexico in the coming days.

Record low temperatures and high winds are expected to move into northeastern New Mexico on Wednesday night and hit much of the country ahead of the Christmas weekend, posing severe health risks and affecting holiday travel.

While Santa Fe will be less hard hit than other areas of the state and nation, wind chills could drop temperatures to 6 degrees in the city Thursday morning and zero degrees Friday morning — cold enough for city officials to activate the "Code Blue" protocol under which homeless shelters make extra room and city employees double up their outreach efforts to get people out of the deadly cold.

The city's Code Blue policy included distributing tents and sleeping bags on freezing nights to people who lacked shelter during the coronavirus pandemic, but the practice ended this year, drawing outcry from the community. City officials have defended the policy change, saying they don't want to encourage illegal camping on public property and would rather ensure people are taken to safe facilities.

Critics argue, however, that not everyone living on the street will agree to go to a congregate facility, and some have been banned from local shelters, often due to behavioral health issues.

Kyra Ochoa, director of the city's Community Services Department, said the city needs to find solutions for homeless people who refuse to go to shelters and more needs to be done to get homeless people out of the elements, especially on frigid days.

But she said she is proud of the progress the city has made, which she said has helped prevent some hypothermia deaths.

This week's Code Blue came as advocates for those in the homeless community held a vigil for the 37 people who have died in Santa Fe in the past year, including several who succumbed to freezing temperatures. One of them, former New Mexican newspaper vendor Wild Bill Rivas, was remembered as a dear friend to many. He died in late January at age 77. While police at the time said his death was from natural causes, advocates said Wednesday he had fallen as he was trying to make his way to his tent on a frigid night and died of hypothermia.

When the city calls for a Code Blue, the Interfaith Community Shelter at Pete's Place on Cerrillos Road makes more space available, as well as the Consuela's Place emergency shelter at the city-owned midtown campus on St. Michael's Drive, which opens up its lobby for people to sleep and get warm food and beverages.

Consuela's Place also has a kennel available for people who need to shelter with their dogs, Ochoa said.

Emergency rooms in the city contact the Santa Fe Fire Department on these especially cold nights if they are discharging people who don't have homes so they can be taken to a shelter.

And, Ochoa said, the city's Alternative Response Unit, a team of emergency medical professionals and case managers, "works overtime on those nights to get out into the community and find people who are unsheltered and talk with them and find out what they need and let them know that they'd like to transport them to Consuela's or Pete's."

The team also distributes warming kits, with hand and foot warmers and other cold-weather gear, Ochoa said. "We also just ordered a shipment of subzero ponchos for folks."

The ultimate goal is to build trust among the homeless community so more people begin to accept the team's assistance, she said.

When the city launched Code Blue in 2019, very few people accepted transportation to a shelter, Ochoa said, while the most recent Code Blue resulted in nine people out in the cold agreeing to let the team take them to a warm facility.

"That was very gratifying for the team," Ochoa said.

During the day, she said, homeless people can go to public libraries. Consuela's also lets people warm up and eat during the day, she said, while Pete's allows people to stop in on certain weekdays when it hosts resource events.

Still, she said, "There is a real gap in day services for homeless folks."

The National Weather Service in Albuquerque forecasts hazardous crosswinds and dangerous wind chills in New Mexico starting Wednesday night, with below-zero temperatures in some areas that could cause hypothermia and frostbite. Winds will slowly weaken Thursday night, with very cold temperatures persisting into Friday.

In a news release, the state Department of Health's Environmental Health Epidemiology Bureau advised people to be on alert for warning signs of hypothermia such as confusion, shivering, difficulty sleeping, sleepiness and stiff muscles, and said 178 New Mexicans were hospitalized for cold-related illness in 2021.

There is also an increased risk of carbon monoxide poisoning in the winter, the department said.

Common sources of carbon monoxide include faulty furnaces, heaters, fireplaces and stoves in homes; outdoor appliances used in enclosed spaces in garages, campers and tents; and vehicle engines running in a garage or shed or when the tailpipe gets clogged with mud or snow.

The Health Department recommends taking precautions such as making sure heaters are in good condition and that space heaters have an automatic shutoff.

The department also advised people to check on neighbors, bring pets indoors and check both local news media and the National Weather Service for updated information as the storm system passes through.

Eastern and especially northeastern New Mexico are expected to be hit hardest by the coming storm — the National Weather Service is forecasting wind chills as low as minus 32 in Clayton, minus 16 in Tucumcari and minus 19 in Clovis on Thursday morning. The extreme cold is expected to spread west over the course of the day — Las Vegas, N.M., is predicted see a wind chill of 10 degrees Thursday morning but minus 17 Friday morning, while Roswell is expected to go from 17 degrees Thursday morning to minus 6 Friday morning.

"Wind chills this cold can certainly be life-threatening if folks don't take the proper precautions," said Randall Hergert, a meteorologist.

Temperatures as low as those forecast Thursday and Friday are "not unheard of but certainly not common," Hergert said. Northeastern New Mexico, especially, could be cold enough to break some records, he said.

"If you don't have to go outside in these conditions, just don't," he said.

And if you do, cover up completely.

"Fingers, noses, ears, just any exposed skin can be at risk of frostbite in wind chills this cold, particularly through northeastern New Mexico," Hergert said.