Utah’s severe summer heat can be fatal. As we move into another summer with above-average temperatures, we must talk about the dangers unsheltered people face in extreme heat.
Many Utahns might be used to this weather, and most can escape the heat in buildings and cars with air conditioning. Salt Lake’s homeless population doesn’t share this luxury.
As temperatures increase and mortality rates amongst the homeless follow. We can’t turn a blind eye to the dangers of hyperthermia.
We have to protect our unhoused population from Utah’s extreme heat to lower the heat-related mortality rate.
Homelessness And The Heat
The heat is killing homeless people. A 2024 report conducted in Las Vegas found that most homeless deaths occur on high-heat days.
Heat illnesses, like heat exhaustion and heat stroke, can affect anyone regardless of housing status. This year, 13 people hiking in Zion National Park had to be rescued due to heat-related illnesses.
Hiking in such extreme heat is a choice. Most unsheltered individuals can’t escape the heat or get rescued from it.
Heat exhaustion and heat stroke are dangerous. A study from 2021-2022 showed that, due to heat-related illness and injury, homeless people had to visit the emergency room 27 times more frequently than other people.
Heat detriment is more than physical. Studies have shown that experiencing extreme heat for multiple days can lead to an increase in suicidal ideation, manic and psychotic episodes and substance abuse.
There’s also the possibility of severe burns from the sun heating surfaces, with reports from Orlando seeing unsheltered people with severely burned feet from hot pavement. In 2024, some homeless people in Las Vegas experienced second and third-degree burns after falling asleep on the sidewalk.
Salt Lake’s Lackluster Homeless Infrastructure
Salt Lake’s homeless support system is failing the homeless community.
In 2023, various Utah cities were funded with nearly $10 million to help fight homelessness, but only $400,000 went to communities and neighborhoods. Salt Lake City used 84% of its funding to hire more police officers for “homeless response”. That funding included the purchase of new ballistic vests, vehicles, body cameras and patrol weapons.
There are not enough shelter beds for homeless people in Salt Lake. Utahns are being forced out onto the streets, and with nowhere to go, they set up camps around Salt Lake. These camps have caused outrage with landowners. Instead of addressing the issue of homelessness at its core, these proprietors claim that these camps force “hardworking taxpayers … to endure lawlessness, trespasses, arson, pollution and the destruction of their businesses and homes.”
To fight the lack of shelter beds, Utah lawmakers sponsored a bill that would make “code red” alerts. These alerts would trigger when temperatures reached 105°F, making cool zones and shelters increase capacity by 35%. The increase in shelter beds was meant to keep homeless Utahns out of the heat.
This bill was made to reflect a similar “code blue” bill, which would let emergency centers open additional space for homeless people in severe winter temperatures.
Code Red, a life-saving bill, slipped through the cracks. Though the beginnings of the bill were hopeful, in March it failed in the Utah House, effectively dying for the 2025 session.
Shelters are usually at or over capacity, leaving homeless people on the streets. Code Red was meant to provide more cooling centers for the unsheltered in Utah, and without this bill, the number of people left in the heat remains high.
These large gaps in provisions for homeless people are only exacerbated by the extreme heat. They serve as a reminder that Salt Lake is actively failing its unsheltered community.
How Real Heat Is Affecting Real People
Karissa Guthrie, the community relations coordinator for The Road Home, has seen the effects of severe heat firsthand.
“[Unsheltered people] are at a higher risk for dehydration, heat exhaustion, heat stroke, and there aren’t a lot of places with shade and water,” Guthrie said. “The elements are brutal, and these temperatures are gonna creep back up. These people are exposed to the elements, which makes it that much more dangerous.”
The difference between shelter beds and cool zones is that the former allows for overnight emergency care. “At the end of the day, we have all of these resources where they can come and get temporary relief, but we don’t have places for them to get overnight relief.”
“We’re recognizing that we don’t have enough shelter beds and that we need to do more to get people inside,” Guthrie said, addressing the lack of shelter beds, both within The Road Home and across Salt Lake. “We are at capacity every night. If people want a safe place to turn to, having these extra beds helps make sure people aren’t dying out on the streets.”
When asked how people can help, Guthrie said, “Consider donating to homeless agencies and speak up to your legislators if you’re able to. Continue to fight for [homeless people] to have that assistance available. It’s advocating for more shelter beds and more resources to become available.”
“We are actively asking for [donations] all year round. Chapstick, sunscreen, hats, cool rags. So we can help make sure that we’re keeping [people] safe,” Guthrie said.
With such extreme heat and few options for relief, holding compassion for our unsheltered community members is important.
Donating monetarily, sparing sunscreen and letting homeless people loiter in places with air conditioning are all ways to help. Salt Lake needs to improve its homeless resources for the safety and well-being of homeless people, especially in extreme weather.
Don’t forget to have compassion for homeless Utahns. We need to remember how Salt Lake’s heat severely impacts all of us, including unsheltered people.
Editor’s note, June 23, 12:36 p.m. • A quote from Karissa Guthrie was updated to clarify that the shelter is at capacity nightly, not turning away more people than admitted.
