The Midwest is being hit with severly low temperatures as the polar vortex continues to ravage the region, resulting in numerous deaths and injuries. In Chicago, subfreezing temperatures have paralyzed the city's activity with residents enduring harsh wind-chills and the risk of frost bite.
In response to this life-threatening cold, one good Samaritan has agreed to put up 70 homeless men and women in area hotels while the city overcomes the bitter cold.
The group of individuals had set up camp near the Dan Ryan Expressway, and donated propane tanks were functioning as their only source of heat. However, when one of the makeshift heaters exploded, the Fire Department confiscated the remaining tanks. As fire department Chief Walter Schroeder explained, "When we got there, the fire was extinguished and they found all these propane cylinders. That’s when we escalated it to a Level I Hazmat. There was a significant amount of propane there, and with that many cylinders, that's like a bomb going off."
The city officials then planned to have the homeless men and women taken to a makeshift warming center at the Downtown Salvation Army. However, the charity was notified shortly after that an anonymous donor had agreed to pay for the individuals to stay in a hotel on the city's Southside.
"Isn’t that wonderful? At least they’re warm and they’re safe," a spokesperson for the Salvation Army told the Chicago Tribune. "Some wonderful citizen is going to put them up at a hotel for the rest of the week." The identity of the donor has not been released, nor has the name of the hotel where the individuals will be staying. Regardless of what the accomodations are, the good Samaritan is likely footing a rather large bill.
