Homeless study counts 200 people in 4 N.B. cities

Volunteers have counted roughly200 homeless people in four New Brunswick communities as part of a national initiative to track homelessness across Canada.

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Saint John, Moncton, Fredericton and Bathurstwereamong the 30 Canadian cities that participatedin thecount, which took place between Feb.19and 22.

ThePoint-in-TimeCount, a national strategyfundedby the federal government, was set up to "to provide a snapshot of homelessness across Canada," according to a news release.

About 150 trained volunteerstalked to people staying in shelters andtransitional housing, and to thosesleeping without a shelteron the nights of the count.

They found 13 people experiencing "absolute homelessness" inBathurst,50 in Fredericton, 60 in Saint John and 77 in Moncton.

The count was conducted in partnership with the Community Council on Homelessness in Saint John, the Community Action Group on Homelessness in Fredericton, the Greater Moncton Homelessness Steering Committee,the Homeless Community Network Inc. and the Bathurst Youth Centre.

The data will be used as a baseline to measure changes over time.