How white tents in downtown Phoenix are helping prevent the COVID-19 spread among the homeless

You might've noticed some white tents popping up in downtown Phoenix. FOX 10 takes a look inside them to see what they’re for and how they might prevent COVID-19 from spreading among those without a home.

PHOENIX - You might've noticed some white tents popping up in downtown Phoenix.

FOX 10 takes a look inside them to see what they’re for and how they might prevent COVID-19 from spreading among those without a home.

Nearly every instruction we are given on how to avoid the virus, especially if we are infected, are nearly impossible to follow for those that don’t have a home, no where to isolate.

Circle the City provides health care to those going through homelessness in Phoenix.

Starting Wednesday, they’ve launched a new project to make sure anyone showing symptoms of COVID-19 have some where to go.

They’ve set up 8 of the tents on the human services campus. Each tent has 5 cots inside. They have air conditioning, hand washing stations and bathrooms. Each cot is separated from other cots inside the tents.

Some medical care will be provided but anyone with serious symptoms would still be taken to the hospital. Circle the City has an indoor building where they are prepared to provide a long term option for anyone who tests positive.

These tents are for anyone without a home who believes they might have COVID-19 and needs somewhere to isolate before test results come back.

Someone might spend two to three days in the tent as they await results.

Linda Ross with the program says it’s necessary to make sure any one who potentially has the novel coronavirus doesn’t spread the virus to everyone else without home in this area.

"They go out in the street wherever they came from, encampments, they don’t typically have the ability to hand wash or proper hygiene or toilets or facilities that will help with minimization of the spread so this is a way to isolate them have all of the things they need to take all of the proper precautions," Ross said.

As of Wednesday night, no one has tested positive who've been staying in the tents. They hope they never have to use the 40 cots, but they want to be prepared in case if COVID-19 spreads in the homeless community in downtown Phoenix.