ST. ALBANS, Vt. -
In St Albans, Vermont police are investigating the death of a homeless man. 54 year old Richard Poquette was found around 4 PM Tuesday when police arrived to the area behind Domino's in St Albans.
Police say they found Poquette outside a makeshift hut that burned to the ground. Police say the fire started because of burning candles and Poquette had serious burns on his body when they found him.
Investigators are awaiting an autopsy report but St Albans police say all signs point towards an accidental fire death.
We wanted to know what resources are available to the homeless to prevent this from happening again so we stopped by Tim's House, a shelter in St. Albans, to find out.
Director Linda Ryan says she operates a transitional home that focuses on finding long term housing arrangements and a job.
But there is a rule for staying there. You can't drink alcohol.
There's another program for the homeless called Pathways for Housing that doesn't have a no-alcohol policy and focuses on finding housing first.
Homeless are put in apartments paid for by federal funding. Ryan says she wasn't sure about Pathways at first but says it could make a huge difference.
"It has proven to work well in other areas. I admit I was very skeptical about it at first but I see the huge value in it," Ryan said.
"And situations like this, I'm not saying he would come in if he had a chance to get an apartment but who knows. He might of,"
Pathways for Housing has been active in Vermont for three years and currently operates five different counties in the state. In the past three years Pathways has helped 150 homeless Vermonters.
