HOPE team carries the load during devastating winter storm

HOPE team carries the load during devastating winter storm

Published on January 27, 2026

HOPE stands for "Home. Outreach. Prevention. Education." And that is exactly what this dedicated team has been delivering during winter storm Fern.

Formed in 2019, the HOPE team is a successful outreach program of the City's Police and Fire departments and community partners. The HOPE team works to find housing programs for the homeless to keep them out of jail or the hospital.

Their year-round work came into hyperfocus during this week's record winter storm.

On the morning of Sunday, Jan. 25, the HOPE team responded to a large encampment located off East Ninth Street on the east side of downtown Fort Worth. Having visited the camp the day before to offer transportation to a shelter, HOPE returned to check on those who made the choice to spend the night outside.

The encampment was not easy to get to: down a roadway, under a bridge and down a steep embankment. By the time the HOPE team reached the site, all of the campers said they were ready to be transported to a warm shelter.

Due to the distance from the transport bus and the steep terrain, the team encountered significant logistical challenges. Four people had no shoes - their footwear had become soaked and frozen overnight. Because of the conditions and terrain, the team decided to physically carry individuals up the hill to ensure their safety.

One of the occupants being carried was a man who was visibly exhausted, emotionally distressed and had been exposed to extreme cold throughout the night. While a HOPE team member carried the man on his back and began moving up the steep and icy hill toward a transport bus, he reassured the man that he was safe and that help was coming. But approximately halfway up the hill, the man began actively seizing, consistent with complications from hypothermia.

The team rushed him to the transport bus, began warming measures and immediately notified command to send an ambulance response. After a brief time, the patient stabilized, but then experienced four additional seizure episodes.

FWFD Engine 1 and an ambulance arrived on scene. Rescuers further stabilized the patient and transported him for advanced medical care at a local hospital.

Once the medical emergency was addressed, the HOPE team resumed its operations and successfully transported the remaining individuals from the encampment to a shelter, ensuring they were removed from the cold and placed in a safe environment.

HOPE team members made more than 300 contacts during the storm and its aftermath. They have distributed over 300 blankets, gloves and hand warmers. They've assisted in transporting 150 people to shelters. And for 60 people who asked not to be transported to a shelter, they worked on reuniting them with family and friends for a safe place to stay.

This is what we do in Fort Worth: We help one another and carry them through the toughest times.

Photo: A HOPE team member carries a homeless camper up a steep embankment to warmth and safety.

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