Mayor Michelle Wu today announced a cold weather advisory in response to the bitterly cold temperatures expected tonight and this weekend.  Boston is forecasted to experience wind chills as low as zero overnight tonight into Saturday, January 22. This follows a wind chill of below zero Thursday night into Friday.

Mayor Wu is advising residents to take precautions, reminding them to check in on older adults, people with disabilities, and people experiencing homelessness. If you see an individual experiencing homelessness and vulnerable individuals out in the cold who appear immobile, disoriented, or underdressed for the cold, please call 911. If residents are aware of anyone staying in a vehicle or a place not intended for living during these extreme cold temperatures, they are encouraged to call 911 as well.

While the temperature forecast does not reach the threshold for declaring a weather emergency, Boston Centers for Youth & Families’ (BCYF) community centers will be open for people to warm up during their normal operating hours tomorrow. They are also open for pre-registered regular programming. Due to COVID-19 public health regulations, all people entering BCYF community centers must wear a face covering (covering both the nose and mouth) and must sign in and include contact information. Locations open on Saturday can be found at Boston.gov/BCYF.

The Boston Public Library’s Central Library in Copley Square will be open during normal operating hours tomorrow, and is available for people in need of a place to warm up. Visitors to all BPL locations are required to wear face coverings fully covering their nose and mouth.

City COVID-19 testing sites are running on normal operating hours, but are subject to change as the forecast updates. A full list of City testing sites and any changes to hours can be found here.

The Southampton Street Shelter and Woods Mullen Shelter will remain open 24/7. Amnesty is in effect and anyone with a non-violent restriction may come in.

The Boston Police Department (BPD) is making announcements on every shift for officers and all personnel to be on the lookout for vulnerable people on the streets. BPD will conduct wellness checks or assist with transportation to available shelters and coordinate with emergency medical personnel for unsheltered homeless persons in distress. The BPD Street Outreach Unit will be available as a resource to assist the districts, outreach providers and 911 dispatch as needed.

For alerts, including cold-weather alerts, residents are encouraged to sign up for Alert Boston. For more information, please visit the Winter in Boston guide and follow @CityofBoston on Twitter.