Mother Nature is about to unleash 6 to 10 inches of snow Sunday, followed by brutally cold temperatures, with several nights of zero and subzero conditions.

From Sunday night through Wednesday evening, temperatures are expected to plummet.

Emergency shelters such as the Lehighton Cold Weather Station at Ebenezer Church, 119 S. Third St., Lehighton, is ready for whatever weather comes.

The Lehighton Cold Weather Station plans to reopen at 2 p.m. Sunday. Nancy Berchtold, officer of St. Vincent de Paul Society of SS. Peter & Paul in Lehighton, said the shelter intends to remain open 24/7 through Wednesday and possibly longer.

While Monday will be extremely cold, the coldest days appear to be Tuesday and Wednesday, according to Dan Pydynowski, a senior meteorologist with AccuWeather.

Pydynowski said Monday is expected to hit around 20 degrees, but with the wind, real feel temperatures will be much lower and in the single digits, with some areas getting down to about zero.

Tuesday night looks to be the coldest night, as much of the area could end up seeing below zero to even minus 3 degrees. Highs on Tuesday and Wednesday aren’t expected to get out of the teens.

“The most extreme cold is Monday into Wednesday night,” Pydynowski said, adding that temperatures will start to trend upward a bit by Thursday, with highs back in the mid-20s. “It will (still) be cold, but won’t be as extreme.”

“We will expect to stay open through this arctic blast and with our 25 degrees and below, we always look to see what the weather is,” Berchtold said. “From what we could see, we will be open 24/7 through Wednesday and perhaps up until the weekend until the temperatures are not dangerous.”

So, does the shelter have the capacity to meet the potential high demand that could ensue?

“We do anticipate some of the folks who are out there when the temperatures are below zero, and I think we’ll be OK,” Berchtold said. “We actually had taken down some cots, but some people are finding it very comforting to be with us every day (while) some find work and leave and come back a few days later.”

Berchtold added, “We always have an influx.”

She said the most they have housed at one time is 22 people. “And that’s tight, but we’re fine.”

At present, the Lehighton Cold Weather Station is averaging about a dozen people every night, Berchtold said, and believes they have enough space to comfortably accommodate 25 people.

“We had a donation of a wonderful bunk bed that will be of help,” she said. “Space-wise, we could handle this differently a bit more, and if our needs got to more, like 30 to 40 (people), we’ll have to find more space.”

Berchtold said volunteers left the shelter at 10 a.m. Friday to travel to Doylestown on Saturday to attend a half-day training and seminar with the staff of the Coalition to Shelter and Support the Homeless, which has been a mentor to them.

“They’ve been in existence for 15 to 20 years and like us, they are a faith-based nonprofit with an emergency shelter that serves Bucks County,” she said. “We found them last year, and we’re so busy serving the homeless here (that) we haven’t had a chance to tap into their resources and knowledge and experience, so we’re really excited to be there.”

However, Bechtold said, “Our guests are left out on the street when we close. If they are lucky enough to have a tent, they aren’t so anxious.”

“We said goodbye to very anxious people who have nowhere to go and today (Friday) are going to be scrambling to find a place to stay until the shelter opens on Sunday, and that saddens us because we are doing the best we can,” she said. “The community has been so generous, and yet we need to turn them away when snow is falling and it’s 25 degrees.

“We have so many volunteers now who are going to help supervise and chaperon, and we’re just needing to schedule them and see if we can stay open more,” she said. “Depending upon the conditions, wind chill, snow, temperature.”

Volunteers needed

Berchtold said the Lehighton Cold Weather Station is in need of volunteers to cover all the chaperoning shifts from 5:30 p.m. to 9:30 a.m., as well as meals for each day.

“We might be close to half of our goal as far as chaperones,” she said. “Every time we have a need and we get word out, members of our community, members of our churches instantly respond; it’s just been so gratifying.”

Volunteers do not need experience, just compassion and a willingness to learn, the group says.

Berchtold said the shelter is open when temperatures are 25 degrees or lower at night.

She noted that St. Luke’s doctors are ready to set up a street medics clinic at SS. Peter & Paul Church — St. Vincent de Paul, and added their social services, drug and alcohol, mental health, and CareerLink are all a great help.

The Lehighton Cold Weather Station opened its doors on Dec. 1 in the basement of the Ebenezer United Methodist Church at the corner of Third and South streets across from the Lehighton Police Station and Lehighton Fire Department.

The Lehighton Cold Weather Station is a coalition of churches under the support of St. Vincent de Paul Society of SS. Peter & Paul.

Berchtold said the basement of Ebenezer United Methodist Church is open at 6 p.m. for registration and dinner to the homeless when it’s 25 degrees or lower.

She said folks are allowed to stay until 9 a.m., “but our hope is that with enough volunteers, that we can extend that.”

Berchtold said they provide food, mostly from volunteers and folks donating food items, but that they would love to have donations of nighttime meals.

Berchtold said they are seeking more volunteers and donations to offset costs for heating, and are grateful for any assistance.

Those interested in volunteering may sign up to provide meals or chaperon at signupgenius.com or on the Facebook page Lehighton Cold Weather Station. For more information, call 570-657-6738.