Warming to the task: Occupy protesters get respite from the cold

Occupy Philadelphia is known for its dozens of tents, but now a more permanent structure has been built just outside Philadelphia City Hall.  

Fernando Salguero said he built the 16- by 8-foot “warming station” as a way to help Occupy Philadelphia demonstrators fight the cold.  The structure, he said, is only temporary and is up to fire code.

“We have a fire extinguisher, we have a carbon-monoxide detector, no open flames no smoking allowed in this structure,” he said. “Out of this structure, we are serving hot tea and facilitating open-minded conversation.”

Salguero said the structure can help people escape fall and, eventually, winter weather.

“Getting out of the biting wind and having a few individuals heating up–that in itself is enough to fight off hypothermia,” he said.

Salguero said the structure was first erected outside the Municipal Services Building over the weekend, but they were forced to move it to the current Occupy location at Dilworth Plaza.

The future of the hut is uncertain since renovations to Dilworth Plaza are scheduled to begin soon