RAPID CITY, S.D. (AP) — State officials have canceled the annual count of South Dakota’s unsheltered homeless population because of the coronavirus pandemic and other concerns. The count is usually done on the last Tuesday of January.

Volunteers of America regional homeless services coordinator Sara Hornick says the Department of Housing and Urban Development made the decision not to do the count this year because of the pandemic, lack of personal protection equipment and an insufficient number of volunteers. Hornick says the count of homeless people in shelters will still take place Tuesday. She and other regional coordinators are concerned about how the decision will impact the level of federal funding.