Polar Vortex Forces America's Homeless To Find Warmth Against Steam Grates And In Metro Stations (PICTURES) | HuffPost

Polar Vortex Forces America's Homeless Population To Find Warmth Against Steam Grates

Paul Vale— The Huffington Post UK

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As the US shivers through the polar vortex, a blast of frigid air that has toppled decades-old temperature records, those living on the streets face a constant battle to stave off the cold. In what is literally a battle to stay alive, cities’ homeless populations have resorted to any means possible to grab some warmth.

SEE ALSO: 9 Stunning Images Of Lake Michigan Frozen

Many huddle next to steam grates, others wrap themselves in every item of clothing they own. The wind chill makes already savage temperatures feel far colder, forcing those on the streets to seek refuge in Metro stations or under bridges.

Groups congregate around homemade fires to keep warm, fuelling it with pieces of wood and refuse. Some simply stand on the sidewalk, frozen, asking for help.

The Homeless Struggle During The Polar Vortex

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A homeless man who wanted to be identified as John, tries to stay warm on a steam grate in Washington. (credit:AP Photo/ Evan Vucci)

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Project H.O.M.E. Outreach Response Worker Sam Santiago encourages Carl, a homeless man, to come in out of the cold in Philadelphia. (credit:AP Photo/Matt Rourke)

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Prince, who is homeless, sits on a subway grate to keep warm on a frigid day in New York. (credit:Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

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A homeless man steels himself against single-digit temperatures with blankets and a jet of warm air coming up from the McPhearson Square Metro station beneath the Department of Veterans Affairs in Washington. (credit:Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

(05 of16)

A homeless man bundled against the cold walks at McPherson Square as temperatures dipped into the single digits Fahrenheit and minus degrees with the wind chill in Washington. (credit:Getty Images)

(06 of16)

Homeless men try to get sleep at a Metro station entrance in Washington. (credit:Getty Images)

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A woman bundled against the cold walks past a homeless man in McPherson Square, Washington. (credit:Getty Images)

(08 of16)

A homeless man bundled against the cold, tries to get some sleep at the Metro station in Washington. (credit:KAREN BLEIER/AFP/Getty Images)

(09 of16)

A homeless man goes through the trash as temperatures dipped into the single digits in Washington. (credit:KAREN BLEIER/AFP/Getty Images)

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Project H.O.M.E. Outreach Response Worker Sam Santiago, right, encourages Ramon Perez of Mexico who is homeless, to come in out of the cold in Philadelphia. (credit:AP Photo/Matt Rourke)

(11 of16)

Michael Best, right, and others who identified themselves as homeless, use donated wood and a fire barrel to keep warm in Knoxville. (credit:AP Photo/Knoxville News Sentinel, Michael Patrick)

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Nicholas Simmons, 20, of Greece, N.Y., left, warms himself on a steam grate with three homeless men by the Federal Trade Commission, just blocks from the Capitol, during frigid temperatures in Washington. (credit:AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

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Simmons disappeared from his parents house in a small upstate New York town, leaving behind his wallet, cellphone and everything else. Four days later, an Associated Press photographer, looking for a way to illustrate unusually cold weather, took his picture as he warmed himself on a steam grate. (credit:AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

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Four homeless men warm themselves on a steam grate by the Federal Trade Commission. (credit:AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

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Nick warms himself on a steam grate with three other homeless men. (credit:AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

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Victoria Morris, 28, panhandles in Portland, Maine, where the temperature at dusk was 7 degrees Fahrenheit. Morris, who is homeless, decided to seek shelter when she could no longer feel her toes. (credit:AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)

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