For those who live on the streets of Cincinnati, the falling temperatures and bitter winds of the first week of winter have been cruel and unrelenting.

        For them, the onset of cold weather poses a threat to their very lives.

        Making matters worse is that many area churches and shelters offering food and a brief respite from cold are already packed.

        “We're full, and we have been for weeks, even before the cold weather set in,” said Linda Young, director of Welcome House, a 30-bed shelter in Covington. “What we're doing now is trying to problem-solve the best way we can.”

        Ms. Young said her shelter serves mainly families, many of whom have been hit hard by the one-two punch of a sluggish economy and the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, which curbed consumer spending.

        “A lot of them do more seasonal work, so when it gets cold, they get laid off from construction jobs, that kind of thing.”

        Homeless shelters across the country are reporting a surge in homelessness not seen since the 1980s, when recession and the mass release of mental patients led to a dramatic increase.

        According to a survey released this month by the U.S. Conference of Mayors, requests for shelter increased an average of 13 percent in 19 of 27 cities surveyed. But the number of emergency shelter beds for homeless people rose only 9 percent during the same period.

        The survey also found that the working poor have become the fastest-growing segment of the rising homeless population nationwide.

        And the same economic conditions that have left so many jobless have also stifled charitable donations, leaving many shelters and agencies that provide services for the homeless struggling to do more with less.

        “All of our shelters, especially the women's shelters and family shelters, have been at capacity all year long,” said Alicia Beck, director of the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. “At the same time, donations are definitely down, which means most shelters are only able to provide the most basic services.”

        Eugene Thomas, who works evenings at the Drop-Inn Center shelter in Over-the-Rhine, said the traditional uptick in donations of food and clothing around the holiday season has helped.

        “The donations have been steady,” Mr. Thomas said. “We wouldn't make it if it wasn't for those donations, but we still need things.”

        For example, he said, the Drop-Inn Center — which sleeps between 250-300 per night, 80 percent of whom are men — has seen a dramatic increase in the demand for winter coats.

        “We've serviced a little over 5,000 people in the last four to five days,” Mr. Thomas said. “Most of them are men coming in lacking even the bare essentials for this weather. Coats are in big demand.”

        If weather conditions turn more severe, there are procedures in place to make sure there are enough shelter spaces available for every person who wants one, said Julia Hairston, of Cincinnati's Department of Neighborhood Services.

        When the temperature drops below freezing for an extended period, the Health Department will declare a cold-weather emergency.

        The city will then work in conjunction with religious and other nonprofit groups to care for the homeless, Ms. Hairston said.

        In case of severe emergency, the homeless may be housed in public or semi-public facilities such as Red Cross shelters, recreation centers or schools.

        The Cincinnati Enquirer/CRAIG RUTTLE Darrell Jones (left) and Phillip Reed, who work and temporarily live at the Drop-Inn Center in Over-the-Rhine, serve part of dinner Thursday.

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