Thousands of campers and RV owners, many retired, use the site during the winter months. The "snowbirds" stay only for the winter before migrating north in spring, to cooler climates. Despite the high temperatures, there are about 150 permanent residents of Slab City. Some of these "Slabbers" or "Year-Rounders" derive their living from government programs and have been driven to Slab City by poverty or job loss. Others have voluntarily moved, to learn how to live off the grid, or otherwise be isolated. "Builder Bill" Ammon described "a kind of segregation" between the older residents, who would exchange goods and services, and young residents, who are sometimes "ill-equipped" for self-sufficiency, or turn to petty theft and drug use. As of a January 2020 report, Slab City is composed of "more than a dozen individual neighborhoods ... small camps of people with their own particular rules and culture." Amenities include The Range, a makeshift library, RV rental units, an internet cafe, and establishments which sell food; though most shopping is done at the town of Niland. One resident is reported to have run a weekly self-help group for women in the community. Residents talked about using CB radio as a bulletin board and adopting radio handles when they spoke to the Chicago Tribune in 1990. In 2005, a resident told Los Angeles Times correspondent for On The Streets documentary how he can just live however he wants. During the COVID-19 pandemic, residents have been heavily impacted by the loss of tourist income, which also provided food and water. Social distancing is also a difficulty, as many residents work closely to trade and maintain services. The pandemic is complicated by the elderly population, no health infrastructure within Slab City (the nearest hospital is 40 minutes away, in Brawley), a lack of insurance, a lack of running water and sanitation, and anti-governmental or conspiratorial beliefs. Residents raised concerns over a past failure to contain an outbreak of canine parvo. As of April 2020, Imperial County had not provided any specific assistance for vulnerable communities. Crime Crystal meth is fairly common and accounts for much of the crime in Slab City. In 2015, the New York Times reported that the usual cause for police response to Slab City is over camping boundary disputes, sometimes burglary, but that methamphetamine use is a recurrent problem. In December 2019, during the two-day Imperial Valley fugitive-seeking effort, Operation