Tirrdell Byrd sat on the floor strumming his guitar as people milled about Over-The-Rhine Recreation Center, winter coats flung over folding chairs, belongings packed into shopping bags and wheeled totes, the smell of pizza lingering. A blind woman was helped to a drink of water by another woman, while nearby, people gathered around a television for news on a weather system packing lethal cold.
They don't typically spend their days in a roller rink, but about 200 people, many homeless, were grateful for a place to shelter from sub-freezing temperatures gripped Cincinnati and much of the nation. At night, buses would arrive to take them to overnight shelters to avoid even colder weather that can quickly lead to frostbite and death.
