A HOMELESSNESS CHARITY has said the need for supplies for rough sleepers has increased by an “awful lot” due to the current hot spell.

Successive warnings issued by Met Éireann over the last two weeks have advised people to keep cool to avoid heatstroke, as temperatures surpassed 30 degrees in some areas.

Temperatures could reach up to 29 degrees in nine counties today, as a high temperature warning remains in place until 8pm.

A spokesperson for the Dublin Simon Community told The Journal that outreach workers have been supplying people sleeping rough with extra water and sunscreen. 

Service manager Jennifer McCarthy said the amount of these supplies required has increased, but said the charity has not seen a large increase in heatstroke and sunburn cases amongst people in homelessness.

She said that daytime hours present the biggest challenge to people in homelessness, and advised them to “come in out of the heat and take shelter in day services”.

McCarthy highlighted services such as Dublin’s Focus Ireland Café and Merchants Quay Ireland as useful resources.

She also called on the public to notify the charity of any rough sleepers to ensure outreach workers can supply them with necessities. 

The Dublin Rough Sleeper Alerts is a mobile app developed by the Dublin Region Homeless Executive and the Dublin Simon Community. It allows anyone in the public to alert homeless services to the exact whereabouts of rough sleepers in Dublin.

“It’s very important for the members of the public to remember that we have got the rough sleeping app and to use it,” McCarthy said.