A fire at an encampment sent smoke across the lawn in front of Kamloops city hall on Monday morning, Oct. 31, 2022.

Image Credit: SUBMITTED/Reid Hamer-Jackson

A fire at a homeless camp in front of Kamloops city hall nearly got out of control this morning. 

People have been camping in front of Kamloops city hall, using fires to stay warm as the city waits for two winter shelters poised to open soon.

Ben Niehaus told iNFOnews.ca he and a group of people were camped there overnight, and they were preparing to move out after a visit from bylaw officers.

Kamloops Fire Rescue had no record of the fire and there was little evidence of the blaze left over this morning.

READ MORE: Kamloops cops miss out on stolen cell phones after communication stumble

The smoke spread in front of city hall around 8 a.m., Oct. 31, shown in a video sent to iNFOnews.ca by mayor-elect Reid Hamer-Jackson.

He had little information about the fire, saying it was sent to him by a security guard working along Victoria Street West. He was left with more questions than answers.

"Some of them live at the Rosethorn, some in the Emerald. There's even some that have been there from Mission Manor. All these facilities have day lodges," he said. "Where's the successes?"

A day space for homeless people is closing today across the street at 48 Victoria Street West, where the city had cordoned off a space for service providers to serve food and connect people with other services.

"Here we have a day lodge for two years in a row. The whole point was for them to go there, get services, get shelter or get into supportive housing," Hamer-Jackson said. "What I see right now is a bunch of people that can't even use the washroom because the washroom's locked at 48 West Victoria Street."

People have been camping in front of city hall for months, but it's unclear whether they've been allowed to stay overnight or simply spend the day in the area.

READ MORE: Vernon councillor ‘disappointed’ with permanent closure of blood lab

Niehaus spoke positively of the day space at 48 Victoria Street West, but the tents and supplies were being packed away on Monday afternoon.

Kamloops Fire Rescue platoon captain Jim Gorman said firefighters have responded to multiple campfires around the city as temperatures drop.

"Unfortunately, with the weather getting cooler, people who don't have housing are trying to stay warm," he said.

He said the campfires are often well managed, especially when they're along the city beaches, but they are obligated to respond since the campfires are illegal.

Meanwhile, the City is yet to announce what organization will operate emergency winter shelters this year.

The former Stuart Wood Elementary and the former Yacht Club were designated for emergency shelter spaces, poised to open Nov. 1.

Canadian Mental Health Association, however, decided it will not be operating those shelters, sending the City and B.C. Housing into a scramble to find an operator.

Out of the Cold Kamloops is likely to operate at least one of the shelters, which it did in partnership with Canadian Mental Health Association last year at Stuart Wood. Renee Stein of the organization, however, told iNFOnews.ca that her organization was only prepared to work three days a week there.

To contact a reporter for this story, email Levi Landry or call 250-819-3723 or email the editor. You can also submit photos, videos or news tips to the newsroom and be entered to win a monthly prize draw.

We welcome your comments and opinions on our stories but play nice. We won't censor or delete comments unless they contain off-topic statements or links, unnecessary vulgarity, false facts, spam or obviously fake profiles. If you have any concerns about what you see in comments, email the editor in the link above. 

News from © iNFOnews, 2022