2024-02-29 19:56:21
Minneapolis firefighters say they have mostly contained a large blaze that erupted at a homeless encampment Thursday morning and sent a plume of smoke over the city’s south Side.
“We got the bulk of the fire knocked down at this time,” said Minneapolis Fire Chief Bryan Tyner, as he was en route to the fire on the 1100 block of E. 28th Street, just after 12:30 p.m.
The city of Minneapolis said on its social media account that two people were treated on site for non-life threatening injuries. A news briefing at the site is scheduled for 3 p.m.
Tyner said people have evacuated the encampment and some nearby homes. Metro Transit buses were on the way to provide heated shelter for the evacuees, he said.
Tyner did not know the origin of the fire or when it started, but he said the blaze was upgraded to a second alarm, meaning it’s more difficult to maintain than a basic fire.
Ashley Jensen, who lives in a house next to the encampment, shared a photo of the large blaze, from which thick black smoke billowed.
“Everyone was screaming and running around, and that’s why I evacuated,” Jensen said. She said she heard several explosions before running down the sidewalk, and residents of the encampment “were trying to grab their things and get out but the fire was spreading super fast.”
The fire melted some of her house’s exterior. Some of the camp’s residents declined to comment.
1709237258
#Large #fire #erupts #south #Minneapolis #homeless #encampment