The deaths of more homeless residents are being counted this year after local officials implemented a formal process to identify them — the latest symptom of the intensifying conversation around homelessness in Wichita. As of September, 46 homeless people had been confirmed dead by Sedgwick County Regional Forensic Science Center investigators. That’s more than the 42 that were counted all of last year through anecdotal numbers compiled via a collaboration between the Wichita Police Department, service providers and homeless advocates. The shift is the latest move to address homelessness in Wichita, following the opening of a new emergency winter shelter in a former elementary school, which city officials aspire to make a multi-agency campus, and amid talk of a “more aggressive” ordinance to remove homeless encampments. Homeless advocates have been requesting a more formal record of deaths for years, and the forensic science center decided this year to classify homeless people among its deceased following media reporting that highlighted the uncertainty surrounding past counts. When first presented with the data, registered nurse and homeless advocate Kathy Bowles leaned back in shock. “Oh my god,” she said.
Source: Local News | Wichita Eagle
