For a second time, Charlotte homeless person found dead during overnight count
A homeless person in Charlotte was found dead early Thursday near Woodlawn Road and the Interstate 77 interchange during Mecklenburg County’s annual Point-in-Time Count, which tracks the county’s homeless population.
This is the second consecutive year a person was found dead during the count.
“A team of volunteers was surveying and assisting a group of homeless individuals when they made the discovery,” said Alex Burnett, a Mecklenburg County spokesman. The death is a reminder of why organizations are working to end homelessness, Burnett added.
“An incident like this reinforces that sometimes that difference can mean life or death for our neighbors, and why housing insecurity remains a Mecklenburg County priority.”
The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department was told of the incident, Burnett said. CMPD did not immediately respond to a request for more information Thursday about the death.
A cause of death has not been released yet. Mecklenburg County Medical Examiner’s Office also did not immediately respond to a request from The Charlotte Observer about the incident.
The death may be the county’s first this year of someone experiencing homelessness, particularly unsheltered homelessness.
Unlike last year when temperatures were in the frigid teens, Thursday morning was a calm 39 degrees.
Last year, Abdul Wright was found dead on Jan. 23, 2025, at 5:26 a.m. on North Tryon Street during the PIT Count. The cause of death was listed as pneumonia, according to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner.
He was sleeping outside, in frigid temperatures with one jacket, three t-shirts, three pairs of pants and two pairs of socks and underwear. Wright was chronically homeless and had a history of mental illness. But ultimately, he was a person, his nephew Nigel Thomas previously told The Charlotte Observer.
About the Mecklenburg Point-In-Time Count
The county’s Point-In-Time Count occurs every January and is required by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Volunteers across Mecklenburg survey and count individuals experiencing sheltered or unsheltered homelessness.
PIT data is considered the minimum number of people experiencing homelessness. The count isn’t an absolute number because some people may not be around during the count.
But the PIT numbers are rapidly increasing. So is all-around homelessness in the county.
Last year, the count showed that 444 people were experiencing unsheltered homelessness in Mecklenbug County. That’s the highest number of people the county has seen living outside since 2010.
Of that group, six were minors, another record. That’s the most children the county has seen living outside since 2008.
Between June 2022 and June 2024, the homeless population rose by almost 15%, increasing from 2,428 people to 2,784.
And as of October, that number sits at 2,300 people, according to county data.
PIT data for this year will be released around May, according to county officials.
Homeless deaths in Mecklenburg County
In November, a vigil was held for those who died while experiencing homelessness. It was held by Homeless Services Network Charlotte, a volunteer-led organization that works to end homelessness.
A possible record of 66 people died last year while being unhoused, according to Hannah-Marie Warfle, the network’s co-chair. In her five years at the organization, that’s the highest number of deaths recorded.
The count includes people who lived on the street, in shelter and those who are in transitional housing.
Last year, Liz Clasen-Kelly, CEO of Roof Above, was one of the people who found Wright on N. Tryon Street.
When she learned of Thursday’s death, she grew quiet. After a sigh, Clasen-Kelly said Wright’s death wasn’t an anomaly. Nor was the most recent death.
“You see the deadliness of homelessness,” Clasen-Kelly said. “At the end of the day, I believe we can end homelessness. I think it’s a matter of investing sufficient resources … I continue to believe people are worth it.”
This story was originally published January 22, 2026 at 12:57 PM.
