A garbage fire was reported at a homeless encampment in Van Nuys, where business owners and neighbors said they were fed up with the unsanitary and dangerous conditions.
The fire was reported at 5 a.m. Thursday near Oxnard Street and Sepulveda Boulevard and was extinguished within 30 minutes by firefighters.
Black smoke billowing from the Van Nuys encampment could be seen in many parts of the San Fernando Valley Thursday morning.
“Not only is it an eyesore, it’s not safe,” said Christopher McNair, a senior manager at Electro Rent Corporation in the area, adding Thursday’s fire was one of a series of incidents in recent years. added. “(There’s) all kinds of junk. We’ve had problems with rats coming in here.”
McNair said some employees who have to come to work early in the morning are scared because they are often accosted by homeless people from encampments.
Two men at the encampment also got into an altercation with the NBCLA news crew and several others Thursday afternoon.
Neighbors said the campground had been cleaned many times, but over the past year, more than 20 pieces of trash had spilled onto the road and the pile had grown.
“Our trucks can’t get in and deliver or pick up packages, and that’s impacting our business,” McNair said. “It’s a security risk.”
Mayor Karen Bass’ office did not respond to a request for comment on the situation.
Los Angeles City Councilmember Nitya Raman’s office denied that the encampment’s location is part of her district, City Council District 4.
But a City Council map posted on Raman’s official website shows some areas of Van Nuys, including the encampment location, are within her district boundaries.
