AUSTIN, Texas — As temperatures in Austin drop to near freezing, the city’s Homeless Strategy Office has opened cold weather shelters to provide a warm place for those in need.

Greg McCormack, Program Manager for Austin Homeless Strategy and Operations, said they are taking in anyone who needs to get out of the cold Saturday night.

“When it gets this cold overnight—it becomes dangerous to be outside,” he said.

The shelters, which opened registration at 6 p.m., offer snacks, meals, and a safe place to sleep. People using this city service will be able to stay in the morning until around 9 am or 10 am, according to McCormack.

Well before registration times, people using the shelters were lined up along the One Texas Center, waiting to get on a bus. The line had people from the front doors to the end of the street.

Oscar Saravia, who is using the shelter, said using the cold weather shelter is a lot better than the alternative.

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“I’d be somewhere probably getting drunk,” Saravia said. “They help us with shelter, and they help us with a lot of stuff.”

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For those who missed registration, a bus will be available until 1 a.m. to transport individuals to the shelters, where they can stay until 9 or 10 a.m.