Created: December 17, 2020 07:37 PM
The city of St. Paul told 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS there are more than 300 people living in homeless camps.
There is an urgent push to find shelter for those who need it as the cold weather starts and the risk of fire danger increases in the camps with the use of propane and wood fires becomes greater.
The St. Paul Fire Department also conducted an assessment of eight homeless encampments throughout the city after more than a dozen fires were reported. The SPFD’s report outlines numerous fire hazards at each homeless encampment.
The SPFD report said since late November, the Kellogg Boulevard encampment, between Wabasha and Minnesota Streets, has been the scene of 15 fire calls and 25 medical calls, with multiple fire hazards. The Mounds Boulevard encampment, near East 7th Street, had five fire calls, 12 medical calls and nearly a half-dozen fire hazards listed.
Fire breaks out at downtown St. Paul homeless encampment Friday s fire was the 17th at Kellogg Park this year.
By Tim Harlow Star Tribune December 18, 2020 10:52am Text size Copy shortlink:
Several propane tanks exploded during a large fire early Friday at a homeless encampment in downtown St. Paul.
Seven tents were damaged in the blaze that broke out about 2 a.m. in Kellogg Park on the south end of downtown, said St. Paul Fire Department Deputy Chief Roy Mokosso.
About 30 firefighters from five stations spent about an hour putting out the fire, which moved quickly through the park on the banks of the Mississippi River.
Federal aid divides homeless in the Twin Cities
The Twin Cities of St. Paul and Minneapolis have faced an alarming rise in homelessness during the pandemic, but there’s nothing similar in how they’ve confronted the crisis.
By Howard Center for Investigative Journalism
ST. PAUL, Minnesota In two rooms in separate cities, people say their names. Around a circle of chairs and tables, they gather weekly to strategize leaving the streets behind. All have been homeless before or are living on the brink.
The conversation is more urgent, as a pandemic winter sets in. And frustration is building with public leaders who they feel have not done enough to help.
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St. Paul leaders said Tuesday they will dismantle eight homeless encampments and relocate residents to shelters starting next week, citing the risk of fires and exposure to the cold.
The St. Paul Fire Department this year has responded to 30 out-of-control fires at camps where propane cylinders and other flammable heat sources have caught fire and even exploded, igniting nylon tents, nearby trees and debris. Emergency crews have also been dispatched to 75 emergency medical calls at camps, including a homeless person staying under a bridge who died of exposure. It s a dangerous, dangerous situation, said St. Paul Fire Chief Butch Inks, explaining how one man suffered serious legs burns after his campsite caught fire.