Fox 4 Now: New shelter opens in Immokalee

IMMOKALEE, Fla. — A new place of refuge has arrived in Immokalee. A ribbon-cutting held to mark the opening of “The Shelly Stayer Shelter” f or victims of human trafficking & domestic violence. Authorities in Collier County say there have been 1,611 domestic disturbance calls with a report written 2018 -2019.

There has also been a peak in incidents during this pandemic, but calls to the hotline have decreased.

“That makes sense the calls have decreased but close to 50%. Over the same time last year, and really what that says to us is that victims are not in a safe place to call our crisis hotline when they are sheltering in place with their abuser” said Linda Oberhaus, CEO The Shelter for abused woman and children.

Oberhaus says, after researching and speaking with victims the Immokalee community was in dire need of this shelter.

“There are families living in violent situations, there are kids who are no longer in school witnessing this violence that is happening at home between their parents,” said Oberhaus.

She says the new domestic violence shelter will operate around the clock.

“Our 24-hour crisis hotline, our outreach offices for people in need of safety planning and counseling, and of course our emergency shelter. If it comes to that and someone has no other place to go and they are living in a violent situation, were open 24 hours a day” said Oberhaus.

However, Megan Dalabes with Abuse Counseling and Treatment in Fort Myers says the numbers have also spiked in Lee County.

“Just in the last few days, there have been over 50 arrests, in Lee County and so we have advocates reaching out to see if they need help,” said. Megan Dalabes.

If you or someone you know finds yourself in a sitaution like this, here are a few helpful phone numbers and websites:

CRISIS LINE: 239 775 1101The Shelter for Abused Women and Children

NCADV (National level for all DV centers) Safety Plan – https://ncadv.org/personalized-safety-plan