An official “State of Emergency” declaration is generally associated with natural disasters such as fires and earthquakes, or related to violence or political unrest as with the riots in Baltimore earlier this year. But in a relatively unprecedented move, King County officials are acknowledging the devastation that homelessness is causing. King County Executive Dow Constantine has been quoted as saying the homelessness crisis is “just as devastating to thousands as flood or fire.” Increasing housing costs, combined with insufficient resources and job layoffs are rendering thousands of people homeless and making it more difficult than ever to find a home.

According to the King County Medical Examiner’s Office, between January and September of this year, 66 homeless people have died. This already is more than in all twelve months of 2014, and the coldest months, which tend to incur the most deaths, are just starting. The number of people who were unsheltered during the one night count in January 2015 increased by 21 percent from 2014. Furthermore, the number of families facing homelessness has grown substantially over recent years, drastically increasing the number of children who are homeless. Homelessness has become a humanitarian crisis.

Seattle is not alone in facing this crisis. Portland, Los Angeles and Hawaii have all declared “States of Emergency” over homelessness in recent months. This is potentially indicative of an oncoming national crisis, as well as of changing attitudes towards those who are homeless. As more and more people become homeless, the face of homelessness is changing. No longer can people who are homeless be written off as bums or lazy by the general populace. The American homeless population is increasingly composed of families, youths and young adults and people with jobs who simply do not make living wages. According to a 2009 estimate by the National Coalition for the Homeless, 44 percent of homeless people have jobs. Officials speculate the proportion of working people who are homeless may be significantly greater now.

So how will declaring a “State of Emergency” impact homelessness? It forces the state and federal government to take action both to alleviate homelessness and, ideally, address the systemic causes of homelessness. State administrative operations will be streamlined. Emergency funds, personnel and equipment can be deployed. Essentially, until the homelessness has been eliminated, or reduced to an “acceptable” level in King County, the city will be working to distribute services and resources, as well as combatting homelessness from an administrative standpoint.

If you are looking for ways to get involved, you can find information at the Seattle Human Services Department website. There are numerous homeless shelters, resource centers and soup kitchens which are currently seeking donations and volunteers.