MOREHEAD CITY, N.C. (WNCT) - Just days after police released the names of the two men killed in a Morehead City shed fire, city officials and advocates for the homeless are speaking out regarding their struggles battling homelessness in the county.
Tuesday Morehead City police identified the victims in the January 15 shed fire as 62-year-old Terry Michael Wray and 64-year-old Irvin “Bucky” Bryan.
Neighbors and friends say both men were homeless and some members of the community say their deaths brought to light the issues of homelessness in the region.
“From some of the worst things that happen to us, we learn from it,” said city manager Randy Martin.
The deaths also brought to his attention un-safe housing conditions. Many of the homes have since been brought up to code, with the help of community volunteers like the Family Promise group.
Martin says for some time the city has been aware homelessness is a problem in Morehead City.
“I’ve got to give credit to a lot of the organizations particularly the churches have come together,” Martin says.
Hope Mission is run by June McLendon and her husband. It’s a rehabilitation program, an men’s homeless shelter and soup kitchen. The meals are open to anyone, but McLendon says to stay in the shelter patrons must submit to a drug test and breathalyzer.
“Some people choose not to come in here, because they’d rather do drugs and alcohol and stay in sheds and sleep under the bridge,” she says.
City management says they work with local religious groups granting permission for them to transform facilities like church’s and the dining hall of Hope Mission into a shelter for those who don’t have anywhere to go.
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