No one was injured after a fire broke out in an encampment in Bowen Park Tuesday, according to Nanaimo Fire Rescue.
A caller reported smoke in Bowen Park at around 9 a.m., so Nanaimo Fire was dispatched to look into it.
— Nanaimo Fire Rescue (@NanaimoFire) June 7, 2022
When firefighters arrived, they found a homeless encampment engulfed in flames.
“We did see a column with smoke coming from the park, we had to find access,” said Stuart Kenning, assistant chief of operations with Nanaimo Fire. “So once we did once we did find access, which took us a bit of time, just because access was very difficult, we found an encampment that was on fire that we had to extinguish.”
Kenning says it took the crews about 10 minutes to gain access to the fire, since it was in a park which made it a little more challenging.
“If it was a house there would be access because there’s a driveway,” Kenning said. “But because it was a park and it’s following trail to get into the park it took a little longer to actually get water on the fire.”
Once the crews gained access to the fire, Kenning says the fire was put out quickly, and it hadn’t spread due to the wet conditions.
Kenning says none of the residents were at the encampment during the fire, and no one was injured in the fire.
He says this fire serves as an important notice to call the fire department if you see smoke.
“If you see smoke, please call us and we’ll investigate,” Kenning said. “Even if you don’t know what it is, call us sooner than later and we’ll come investigate.”
Laura Brougham
