City needs to rethink encampment strategy after fire, Winnipeg councillor says
'We have to step up our game' to help those living in tents: Cindy Gilroy
The city needs to rethink its approach to helping people living in encampments following a fire along the bank of the Assiniboine River Monday evening, a Winnipeg councillor says.
The fire, which broke out at the encampment near McFadyen Playground on Assiniboine Avenue around 6:20 p.m. on Monday, quickly spread, consuming furniture and debris in the camp and coming close to a neighbouring tent before firefighters arrived and put it out.
Coun. Cindy Gilroy (Daniel McIntyre) says the city needs to do more to move people out of camps and into shelters.
"We have to step up our game. We have to look at our internal encampment strategy. As a council, we need to really look at encampments in general and where we're allowing them," Gilroy said in an interview.
Many people living in encampments don't feel comfortable staying in shelters out of concern over safety and privacy, Gilroy says. She wants to see the city work with its partners in the shelter sector, as well as other governments, to address those concerns in order to encourage more people to take advantage of available shelter space.
One camp resident who spoke with CBC News said he heard a loud bang before the fire started, but doesn't know what caused it. Camp residents tried to douse the flames with water they had in jugs but were unable to contain the fire.
Darby Hatfield, who saw the fire while out for a walk, says her thoughts are with the people living in the camp.
"It's unfortunate," she said. "I wish there was more that we could do, and I wish there was more resources that they could reach out for."
Abegeille Nganamon, who works for a nearby daycare and brings children to play at the park every day, says they've never had any problems with people in the camp.
"The people here are very good, they are not aggressive. We come here every day. They say, 'Hi, how are you?' We reach out every day."
The city says tracking the number of encampment fires is difficult. The number of non-structural fires — which include homeless encampments as well as other sources such as grass and garbage fires — has fluctuated over the years, reaching a new high last year of 2,354.
In the first six months of this year, there were 1,151.
The smell of burning lingers in the air at the camp on Assiniboine, where a camp resident says fire prevention officers have visited in the past and advised them to space out their tents, which they say is part of the reason the fire didn't spread.
Lisa Gilmour, assistant chief of community risk reduction for the Winnipeg Fire Paramedic Service, says there's no plan to order the residents to leave.
"Vacate orders are very disruptive and can be very traumatic for the individuals living in the encampments, so we do try to use those as a last resort," she told reporters.
Fire officials look for a "consistent pattern" of fire safety violations before issuing a vacate order, Gilmour said.
A spokesperson for the mayor says the city hopes to receive a chunk of $250 million the federal government announced last month to help cities tackle homelessness.
A spokesperson for provincial Housing, Addictions and Homelessness Minister Bernadette Smith says the province and feds are still in discussion.
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