Charred possessions were scattered across a small homeless camp in South Vancouver after part of the area caught fire on Monday.
Vancouver Fire Batallion Chief Brian Bertuzzi said the call came in at around 1:30 p.m. near the north end of the Oak Street bridge.
Firefighters saw heavy smoke and flames near the road, and had a difficult time accessing the area due to traffic, he said. They ended up closing the bridge for a time so firefighters could access hydrant lines in the northbound lane.
The encampment was fully engulfed in fire by the time they were able to reach it with hoses.
"Just debris, looks like collectibles in a typical homeless camp – everything was fully involved in fire upon arrival," Bertuzzi said.
"Everything from tarps to wood. We had some small propane tanks exploding upon arrival. Just a lot of debris and clothing."
It is not yet known what caused the camp to catch fire. Witnesses told firefighters they saw a person or people who they believed to be campers leaving the scene around when the fire broke out.
Two residents of the camp arrived after 3 p.m. and said they were devastated by what they saw. They had to wade through soot and ash to pick up what few items were salvageable.
"Nobody has the right to do this to anybody," a woman who lives at the camp said.
The woman said she was at work when she found out. A man who also lives there arrived and informed her of the fire.
They'd been living on the small lot for about five months, the woman said. She told reporters at the scene that she and the man are the camp's only residents.
"It was mostly just clothes and materialistic things. The blankets were definitely essential," she said.
They hope to clean up the area and set up again.
