NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — As the number of COVID-19 cases rises in Davidson County, Nashville organizations are working with Metro officials to try and create a plan for the area's homeless population.
"We're certainly concerned about the coronavirus and the homeless population and the homeless community," Nashville Rescue Mission CEO Glenn Cranfield said in a video interview.
The Nashville Rescue Mission has suspended all volunteer activities amid the coronavirus outbreak.
"They already have health issues, many of them, so this is a matter we take very seriously," Cranfield added. "We don't turn any one away typically, so they come in and we find a place for them. But to be six feet apart, which is the recommendation from the CDC, it does place a unique burden on us."
Now the Rescue Mission and other local organizations are working with Metro Leaders to come up with a coronavirus contingency plan. One of the options, according to Cranfield, could be using the Fairgrounds Nashville as an overflow shelter.
"Certainly the fairgrounds would be an option, there are several other options that may be available." Cranfield said, adding that the health of the homeless population is an issue for all Nashvillians.
"It is a general health problem, if somebody is found to be positive with the coronavirus, they cant go home to isolate, because they have no home," Cranfield said.
