Two children who likely froze to death in a van outside a hotel had been living in the vehicle with their family for a few months, authorities said.
The mother of the tragic nine-year-old boy and a two-year-old girl had begged authorities for help with housing as early as November 25 but “no resolution” was reached. It led to the family travelling around in the van as temperatures plunged amid a big freeze across northeastern US.
The family was not deemed an emergency, Mayor of Detroit, Mike Duggan, told reporters on Tuesday, one day after the kids died. Three other children and two adults, including their mother, had been staying in the vehicle and needed treatment in hospital after they were struggling to breathe this week.
Mr Duggan added: “For whatever reason, this wasn’t deemed an emergency that caused an outreach worker to visit the family. … As far as we’ve been able to determine so far, the family never called back again for service.
“And as far as we’ve been able to tell, our homeless staff never proactively reached out to say, ‘What happened with your situation? Was it resolved?'”
During the sombre press conference in Detroit, the mayor also said his team will review the family’s contact with authorities in the city. He believes the family had been living in the van for several months.
He continued: “It’s a terrible day in Detroit,” pointing out the city has some 1,400 beds available for people seeking shelter and a help line to call.
The children, thought to have been siblings, were found unconscious in a vehicle at the car park for Hollywood Casino Hotel in the Greektown neighbourhood. All five youngsters and the adults were rushed to hospital.
The tragedy in the US comes as pressure mounts in this country for the government to do more to tackle homelessness. Shelter, the houseing and homeless charity, said the UK must invest in affordable social homes with rents tied to local incomes. Speaking last month, a spokesperson said: “We need 90,000 each year for 10 years to end the housing emergency for good.”
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