Local

Dozens comb streets for King County homeless count

SEATTLE — Dozens of people were out trying to count the number of homeless people in King County overnight.

Last year, teams found 12,112 people in King County who identified as homeless. That number climbed 4 percent from 2017.

The annual count started at 2 a.m. and ended at 6 a.m. Teams are working in groups of two to four to do a visual count.

Volunteers walk or drive over a route, some walking two to three miles to do the count, which is meant to provide a snapshot of who is experiencing homelessness.

In 2018, there were 6,320 unsheltered homeless in King County, versus 5,792 sheltered.

A look through the Count Us In report said the numbers they will gather will be considered conservative and will probably undercount the number of actual homeless people.

King County said the largest increase observed last year were people living in vehicles. From 2017 to 2018, there was a 46 percent jump in people living in cars, vans and RVs.

Knowing how many homeless are in the county helps determine what services are needed and where.

A full report on the count will be released in several months.

There are other homeless counts happening this week. Pierce County's Point in Time Count also starts Friday.

Kitsap County's started Tuesday and runs through Friday.

Volunteers in Thurston County kicked off their annual homeless census Thursday.