Council member Chavez: No shelter capacity for 230 people displaced after encampment fires

Amid the cold weather there have been a string of fires at encampments in Minneapolis. Two encampment fires ignited Monday just six blocks apart. Both were in the Midtown Phillips neighborhood in south Minneapolis.

At the larger of the two encampments, Minneapolis fire officials say propane tanks exploded, causing a large plume of black smoke to rise over the city. At the other encampment, they were able to put out the fire before any explosions occurred.

These incidents follow another fire under similar circumstances less than a month ago, where propane tanks exploded at an encampment in the same neighborhood.

Minneapolis Council member Jason Chavez represents the area where the encampment fires happened. He joined MPR News host Nina Moini to talk about solutions for unhoused people in Minneapolis.

Advocates for the homeless say more than 200 people were displaced in Monday’s fires. Minneapolis fire officials say they did not have an official count.

“There is no shelter capacity for or for any location to accommodate that many people staying in a place that is warm, safe and secure,” Chavez said. “Folks here are very stressed. They experience something that is very traumatic and something that heightens the reality that we need to address more solutions to address this issue hands on, in a humane approach.”

Christin Crabtree, an organizer with Camp Nenookaasi, said about 35 people got temporary shelter overnight, but many were left to find their own shelter.

“There were several residents who were hiding in bus shelters to stay warm last night,” she said Tuesday. “We actually called Hennepin County and Ramsey County, and there were very limited number of beds, like under 10 in each at the time that we really needed them. And then dark fell, and so it was a matter of just having outreach out, trying to distribute items to stay warm, blankets, jackets, that kind of thing, food and just support people however we possibly could.”

Crabtree said more help like the nonprofit that opened its doors Monday night is needed.

“We need more people like that, more nonprofits, more faith community partners, people with churches willing to open their doors, because that will make a big difference,” she said. “It is so cold out that people will die, which is why you know people you know are doing things like, you know, using wood and those kind of things to stay warm.”

Chavez said Minneapolis City Council is working to try to address the issue. He said he is looking at different approaches, like a program in St. Paul where the city hires people to help clean up the downtown area.

“We know that if you address the ecosystem around someone with a housing-first approach, the likelihood that they can find stability in their life only increases,” he said. “So that’s one of the things that we’re doing on the City Council, creating low barrier job opportunities for folks that are experiencing homelessness.”

Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation.

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