Advocates call for more respite options after yet another encampment fire

Advocates are calling on the City to open more respite options for those experiencing homelessness after an encampment fire in Kensington Market early Saturday morning.

Fire crews were called to Bellevue Square Park in the area of Dundas and Bathurst streets just before 8:30 a.m. where they found a number of tents on fire. The blaze was quickly extinguished and no injuries were reported.

In a statement, the City says when fire crews responded to Bellevue Square Park they “discovered three tents with a significant amount of combustible material on fire,” adding “The Shelter, Support and Housing Administration dispatched its outreach teams to engage occupants of the affected encampment.”

The fire was just blocks away from another encampment on Bellevue Avenue which the City began clearing late Friday night saying combustible materials on site posed a significant safety risk to those encamped there and those in the surrounding area. The city says nine of 10 people at the site accepted shelter spaces offered to them.

“Why haven’t they implemented any of the recommendations from the Grant Faulkner inquest?” asked outreach worker Lorraine Lam. “The Grant Faulkner inquest had one specific recommendation around fire safety which was to give people survival equipment and supplies to navigate fire safety. Has the city actually done that? Have they provided fire extinguishers, fire blankets, any of that stuff? I would argue no.”

Mayor Olivia Chow said more help is needed from all levels of government.

“Sleeping outside is very dangerous. Unfortunately, a lot of our shelters are full so that’s why we need to open up more shelter beds, and we need to build more affordable housing.”

Advocates say they want the City to open 24-hour warming centres year-round for those who are unhoused, saying encampment evictions don’t work – they just force displaced people to find another park.

“I hear often that the City says ‘we don’t open warming centres throughout the winter because of costs’. Well, I’d love to know how much yesterday’s eviction process cost because if we are spending money on something like yesterday, I would argue that those funds can be better spent,” said Lam.