Freezing Their Lack-of Socks Off

They ask we attempt to ignore, they ask we attempt to ignore...but what happens when it's below freezing and we ignore some more?

The temperature fell to 13 degrees in Central Park on Saturday night and was expected to plummet to 4 degrees on Sunday night, the lowest temperatures expected this winter. (The last time it was colder was on Jan. 18, 2000, according to the National Weather Service.) Teams of outreach workers checked on street dwellers every two hours under the department’s “Code Blue” procedure, which goes into effect when the temperature or wind chill drops below freezing and is heightened when the readings fall below 20 degrees, according to Mr. Diamond.On those nights — Sunday was the 41st night that Code Blue had been invoked this winter — the department loosens its restrictions to attract those who would not normally sleep in shelters.