Gerald Hanks
An 85-year-old man went into cardiac arrest and later died while waiting in line for state-funded food benefits at a Houston park.
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The man, who was not identified, was waiting to receive a benefits card from the Disaster Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program, better known as D-SNAP. The man and his granddaughter were walking to the line in Deussen Park when he collapsed.
Created for the victims of Hurricane Harvey, the distribution of the temporary food benefits program has been met with long lines, snarled traffic and harsh criticism.
Since the program requires applicants to appear in person to present their identification documents rather than submit online applications, applicants must stand in long line, often for up to two hours, even before their applications can be processed.
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The Deussen Park location has only one entrance into the facility and one exit out, adding to the long lines and gridlock. The lines have little to no shade, leaving applicants, especially the sick and the elderly, vulnerable to heat-related illnesses.
Harris County Judge Ed Emmett, the local official responsible for opening the D-SNAP distribution centers, claims the program is “exhausted.”
“I’m afraid if you keep opening these, it’s become just a government giveaway as opposed to targeting people who really need help,” Emmett told a local TV station. “So my recommendation was let’s not reopen another one.”
Congresswoman Sheila Jackson-Lee had called on Emmett to open more D-SNAP distribution centers.
“We’ve had engagement,” the congresswoman said, “(but) the only person who can send up the sites is the county judge.”
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Early Thursday morning, just hours before the Deussen Park location was ready to open, the line was already at least a mile long. Some applicants got in line as early as Wednesday night.
“I don’t believe these people are on line in the hot sun if they don’t have a need,” Congresswoman Lee told a Houston TV station.
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