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Fire at homeless encampment spreads to vegetation in SLO

December 16, 2022

By JOSH FRIEDMAN

A fire broke out at a homeless encampment in San Luis Obispo Thursday evening and spread to palm trees before firefighters extinguished the blaze. .

Shortly before 9 p.m., a caller reported the fire burning at an encampment by Santa Rosa Street and Boysen Avenue near Cal Poly, according to the San Luis Obispo Fire Department. Firefighters battled flames in the palm trees and extinguished the fire, preventing it from spreading farther.

Authorities temporarily closed northbound Santa Rosa Street to traffic.

There were no reports of any injuries as a result of the blaze. The exact cause of the fire has not yet been determined.


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mostly just sad… it’s been cold as hell, i understand the need to stay warm but damn yeah these people are not typically stewards of fire safety.


The other day I saw a tent with smoke billowing out of it on the side of 101 near that billboard they accidentally burnt down a few months ago. People having camp fires inside of tents, fires in cluttered camps. It’s bound to keep happening.


Maybe a local church or something could round up old blankets and winter clothing to hand out to the less fortunate… Try to mitigate the cold by other means… I know everyone’s frustrated, but we gotta do something.


2

Ergh, wrong. The ability to live for free solely dependent on others with misplaced compassion is why the problem persists in the first place.


2

I don’t think the fires have much do with mental illness they seem to have enough mental capacity to have money and to buy their drugs.

Look at all the fires that have happened this year at their illegal camps.

Homeless tweaker’s are fire bugs for sure.


5

When will we find a solution to this insanity. SLO seems to have more homeless per capita than anywhere else I’ve been. I recently went downtown late morning and there must have been at least 15 homeless yelling, sleeping or pushing one or more carts through the streets of our once beautiful downtown. It’s not safe, it’s bad for business, and it’s just not appealing. And our “leaders” seem to have no interest at all in cleaning it up; they just want to throw money at it.


I like what Mayor Eric Adams of NYC is doing now. He wants to take the mentally ill off the street and institutionalize them. For their own health and welfare. And for ours. Like we used to do in California.


44

Homeless Poly students, homeless disabled students or people, homeless on cold nights? Prado has no beds or resources, at all. Hm. What to do, freeze to death?


-31

No Kevin, I don’t think anyone is saying that. There needs to be a system/mechanism and resources for involuntary, humane , custody where these folks can be cared for.


9

With a strong wind from the east that entire neighborhood could have gone up in flames…. why are we allowing this to continue… I’d really like to know what the thinking is….


31

Maybe some of the homeless will realize it’s warmer in Los Angeles…GO JOIN THE STATE OF EMERGENCY! :)


27