TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — Winter in Tucson isn't just uncomfortable; for those sleeping on the streets, it can be a matter of life and death.
This year, there's an added challenge: the city of Tucson's Department of Housing and Community Development's request for emergency blankets from the federal government wasn't fulfilled.
Continuum of Care Team Manager Kat Davis says each year, Tucson HCD relies on about 20,000 blankets from the Department of Defense's Homeless Support Program to keep people warm.
In 2024, the department ordered 30,000 blankets after their original 20,000-blanket shipment wasn't enough.
Davis says, this year, when they submitted their annual request in October 2025, the only response was an email saying the program that delivered those blankets wasn't funded, but they'd reach out if funding was secured.
“It’s been like four months since we requested, and we haven’t received anything yet,” Davis said.
To bridge the gap, Davis says the city used funding from a Housing and Urban Development block grant to purchase $16,000 of sleeping bags to distribute to organizations that support unhoused populations in Tucson.
Pima County also gave HCD blankets that they had in storage.
The department's plan was to hold weekly distributions of the blankets and sleeping bags every Tuesday out of storage containers behind their office building. They invited mutual aid organizations, churches and non profits to pick up as much as they needed in a half-hour window.
However, just ten minutes into their first distribution, the storage containers were fully cleared out.
Tucsonan Kelton Cuson came to the distribution on behalf of a mutual aid organization.
“We showed up about 10 minutes after they opened up, and everything was gone, which was very disappointing," he said. "It also highlights how much this stuff is needed.”
Though he was able to get some sleeping bags from another mutual aid group, Cuson says the supply isn't enough to meet the need he's seeing on the streets.
“This time last year, we were seeing maybe 40 to 60 people," he said. "Now we’re seeing 80 to 150 people. Oftentimes, people are asking us for more things.”
Although this isn't the first time Tucson HCD has said they've had to purchase sleeping bags to cover the supply gap, Davis says it isn't always a viable option.
“It’s not something we can reliably do every year, and when we’re spending money on that instead of achieving them for free, it’s taking money from other services that could be provided,” she said.
Despite the quick clear-out of their supplies, Davis says HCD isn't planning to change their distribution patterns, seeing the lapse as more of a supply issue.
"While we ran out quickly, I'd rather they be given out by agencies than sit in shipping containers going unused," she said. " Of course, I'd rather receive thousands of emergency blankets to have a better supply than what we had available this year."
KGUN 9 reached out to the Department of Defense multiple times to determine why there is no funding for this program this year. They haven't responded to our questions.
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Alex Dowd is a multimedia journalist at KGUN 9, where her work combines her two favorite hobbies: talking to new people and learning about the community around her. Her goal is to eventually meet every single person in Tucson. Share your story ideas with Alex via email, alex.dowd@kgun9.com, or connecting on Instagram or X.
