Manatee, Sarasota shelters ready for temp plunge into 30s Wednesday night

MANATEE -- At least four cold weather shelter options are available to the needy in Manatee and Sarasota.

All were at capacity Wednesday as temperatures were expected to plunge into the mid-30s.

The National Weather Service issued a frost advisory for parts of the Tampa Bay region, including inland Manatee County.

The Salvation Army of Manatee County, 1204 14th St. W., Bradenton, offers free shelter when temperatures fall below 45 degrees, said spokeswoman Christine Smith.

Check-in for staying overnight at the Salvation Army is 6 p.m. after dinner is served at 5 p.m., Smith added.

The Manatee shelter can hold 142 men and about 36 women and children, Smith said,

"Our shelter manager does expect us to be filled tonight," Smith said Wednesday afternoon.

The shelter has 102 beds on the men's side and can lay 40 mats on the floor as needed. There are six rooms on the women and family side and 20 mats can be laid down, Smith said.

Three Sarasota County locations offer shelter: Sarasota Salvation Army's Center of Hope, 1400 10th St., Sarasota, opens at 6 p.m.; Grace United Methodist Church, 400 E. Field Ave., Venice, 6 p.m.; and New Hope Community Church, 5600 S. Biscayne Drive, North Port, 7 p.m.

Pets should not be left outside during the cold weather, according to a Sarasota press release. Residents going outside overnight or during early morning hours are urged to dress in warm layers and limit skin exposure.

Sarasota County Fire Department officials advise citizens to use caution when heating their homes as the risk of fire and carbon monoxide poisoning increase during cold weather through improper use of heating devices.

Just before 6 p.m. Wednesday, more than two dozen men stood outside the Salvation Army in Bradenton waiting to secure shelter for the night. Most wore jackets over hooded sweatshirts to fight off the wind.

A bundled-up Charles Schur, 55, said he came to the shelter to "get warm."

"I heard on the radio that it was going to be 35 or 38 (degrees)," he said. "I planned to come here to eat and hopefully get some housing for the evening."

This was not the first night at the shelter in Bradenton for 56-year-old Leo Aarons.

"Past weekend, it's been very cold," he said. "I've been staying here."

Aarons, who first began seeking shelter from the Salvation Army in 2008, said he's got a bad hip and a bad back and is waiting for disability benefits.

"I've got a saying: 'Walk a mile in our eyes and sees what happens,'" he said. "It's tough."

Richard Dymond, Herald reporter, can be reached at 941-745-7072 or contact him via Twitterendattr val="ctrack"/>Amaris Castillo, law enforcement/island reporter, contributed to this report.

This story was originally published February 10, 2016 at 11:55 PM with the headline "Manatee, Sarasota shelters ready for temp plunge into 30s Wednesday night ."