Portland man may have died from hypothermia on Friday
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — As bitterly cold temperatures and wind chills envelop the region, one person may have died from hypothermia on Friday, but the death of another person on Saturday was determined to be natural causes.
Multnomah County officials made that clarification early Saturday evening. An earlier report indicated the Saturday death may have been hypothermia but that was ruled out later in the day.
The death on Friday was of a man in the 97232 ZIP code, officials said. That ZIP code includes the Lloyd District, Sullivan’s Gulch and Laurelhurst. They did not provide any additional information.
Winter Storm Warning in effect for Portland metro as snow, ice, dangerous cold hits region
The CDC states: “Hypothermia is caused by prolonged exposures to very cold temperatures. When exposed to cold temperatures, your body begins to lose heat faster than it’s produced. Lengthy exposures will eventually use up your body’s stored energy, which leads to lower body temperature.”
Only 30 minutes
When you step outside in this winter storm, think smart. Your bare skin only has 30 minutes of outdoor exposure before frostbite sets in.
LIST: Warming shelters in the Portland-Vancouver metro area
Multnomah County is doubling its shelter capacity during the storm, along with distributing supplies such as clothes, hats, gloves, tents, sleeping bags. But they need volunteers.
Multnomah County Health Officer Dr. Richard Bruno said they are making sure “we are getting people house, warmed and safe because these conditions are so dangerous.”
Bruno said frostbite usually hits the fingers, toes and ears. “People can feel numbness, paleness and loss of sensation in those areas. It’s important to reintroduce warmth slowly.”
People who use drugs or alcohol are even more susceptible to these bitter winter winds and temps.
Blanchet House prepared meals before the storm but it needs power to warm them. But if they lose power, Blanchet House is prepared with sack lunches.
“We have food that doesn’t have to be cooked,” said Scott Kerman. “We won’t have coffee but we will be able to get people something to eat.”
There are now more than 700 beds available at 10 warming shelters. One of them, the Friendly House, is taking people in, handing out clothes and making sure everyone got something to eat.
Many, like Christopher Newby, came to find a warm place to stay.
“The snow, the cold, I actually have a membership here,” Newby told KOIN 6 News. “It’s an excellent excellent place. It’s friendly.”
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