A HOMELESS outreach group has called for more hostel beds for rough sleepers in Belfast following the sudden death of a man in his mid-thirties.
Described as "loveable" and a "bit of a rogue", the young man called William, but known as Jimmy, became unwell in the early hours of Sunday in the Donegall Place area.
Despite efforts from both passing nurses and paramedics to revive him, the north Belfast man, who was a regular rough sleeper, passed away.
Jim Connor from Hope Outreach for the Homeless, which distributes hot food and sleeping bags in Belfast city centre and around Dublin Road and the Botanic area, said the team had been left "devastated" by Jimmy's death.
"We knew him very well," he said.
"Years ago when he was younger, he used to box. When I met him the first time, like most of them, they are very wary of you and it takes us a wee while to build up the relationship and the trust.
"He was speaking to us on Thursday night and also on Friday night. I got out of the car and as usual he was over. He just wasn't himself and he turned around to me said `Give me a hug'. I gave him a hug.
"He was in hospital at the end of November and we went up to visit him, from that we actually got very, very close to him".
Mr Connor described Jimmy, who had experienced "marital breakdown", as "a bit of a rogue".
"He didn't take any nonsense and every now and again, if anybody was nasty to us, he was the kind of guy who would have went over and warned them off. He was a loveable guy. There would be ones who would drink, drink, drink. He wasn't that type of person.
"All of the outreach workers are devastated. We just got to know him well. All of them are like out extended family".
Mr Connor said there had been a rise in the number of rough sleepers in Belfast in recent weeks, from six before Christmas to 27 last week.
"There is a lot of new ones, they range from 17 up to mid-fifties," he said.
"Everybody would say that all the ones in doorways are drinkers, but it's not".
He said more needed to be done to help the homeless.
"We need more accommodation," he said.
"There's a meeting at the end of this month to try and get all of the outreach workers and teams to work together as one where we can have a think tank".
Jim Dennison, chief executive of Simon Community Northern Ireland, also said a "new cross-departmental strategy" was needed to deal with the issue of homelessness.
"Many people who are homeless will have financial problems, addictions or mental health issues, and so it is essential that government approach the problem as a wider issue with many causes and effects," he said.
"Simon Community NI will be undertaking research to explore the extent of the problem so that we can start taking steps to tackle it. But this needs support of government, and a commitment to act to prevent the reasons people find themselves without a home".
