Editor’s Note: This story was updated on January 24, 2025, when Essex County extended its Code Blue, opening warming centers at night until the morning of February 1, as did Maplewood Township.
During this current cold snap, Essex County and Maplewood are opening their warming centers until the morning of February 1, and working to find and help anyone who is unhoused, as well as any residents who are facing an emergency because of a lack of heat.
Maplewood contracts with Collaborative Support Programs of New Jersey (CSPNJ), which provides peer outreach to unhoused people year-round and tries to keep them safe and out of the cold in the winter.
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Representatives from CSPNJ were out on the streets of Maplewood from 8 p.m. to midnight on Tuesday, Jan. 21, as well as during the day on Wednesday Jan. 22 and they will be back out on Friday, Jan. 24 and then again on Saturday, Jan. 25, from noon to 2 p.m. at the library branch at 129 Boyden Ave and then around town from 3 to 8 p.m., said Health Office Candice Davenport.
The township will operate community heating centers through January 31 for the overnight hours.
“People should use [the CPSNJ warm line number (848) 234-7006] to report and request a check on a person who is outdoors in the cold,” Davenport said. And in an emergency situation, call 9-1-1.
On these cold days, the Maplewood Police Department lobby is open. “If the CSPNJ staff are on shift they can speak to the individual and transport them to a more functional shelter in Essex County, if they want to go,” Davenport said.
Essex County has extended its Code Blue and is keeping warming centers open through Saturday, February 1 at 8 a.m. Warming Centers are open from 8 p.m. to 8 a.m. Code Blue protocols are enacted when the temperature is forecasted to drop below 32 degrees or due to inclement weather.
In addition, residents who are experiencing a lack of heat or heating emergency should call the Mapalewood police non-emergency line at (973) 762-1234.
“Residents will be invited to the Municipal Court/Police Headquarters and housed in the courtroom until a formal heating center is opened and staffed,” said Township Administrator Patrick Wherry.
