Rough sleepers in Nottingham risk electrocution by sheltering in dangerous electricity boxes due to rising homelessness.
Craig Ausher said people are breaking into boxes near the Island Quarter, by the A612. He saw at least four broken into and found sleeping bags inside, which he considered awful.
He thinks people must be very desperate, as live wires exist inside those boxes, and something bad could happen. He has seen several open lately and believes more people use them now.
Things seem worse in Nottingham, with people sharing shop doorways to sleep. He saw five crammed into one doorway, indicating that shelter becomes harder and harder to find.
Nottinghamshire Live visited the area and saw sleeping bag pieces near two boxes. These boxes sit near the A612 road.
Framework spoke about helping rough sleepers and relies on the public for info. People can call their free phone number if they find someone sleeping rough.
They thank Nottinghamshire Live for the electricity box report, acknowledging that homeless people might use them for shelter. Rough sleeping has reached record levels, with a lack of housing being one reason.
Someone risked electrocution for shelter, which shows how desperate street homeless people are. Framework checked the site and found sleeping bag pieces there.
The site might have been used before, but likely isn’t being used right now. Security got strengthened at the shelter, and the outreach team will visit there often.
The Island Quarter said they felt sad after learning homeless people shelter there and are securing places for safety because they were unaware of this before.