Fire Inside Highway 160 Overpass Points To Dangerous Places People Are Making Their Homes
SACRAMENTO (CBS13) - A fire inside a Highway 160 overpass near Business 80 led to the discovery of an unsafe living space.
Fire officials say someone had removed the access plate under the overpass and found a mattress and an end table inside, indicating someone who wasn't supposed to be, was living inside the roadway.
"First priority get these people some place, some shelter, this is horrible and I guess it's one of those things...it might not have been recognized if it wasn't so obvious," said Richard Staff, who heard about the incident.
We asked Sacramento Fire Captain Keith Wade about some of the unsafe areas where firefighters are finding people living.
"If you can think of it, we've almost probably have responded to it at some point," he said.
He tells CBS13 they've put out fires near canals, boarded-up buildings -- even levees where people have made their home.
Simone Levesque says the discovery points to a growing homeless crisis that she sees every day.
"There's just rows and rows of tents," she said.
She's spotted people living near the highway too.
"Or dig through under the Garden Highway like I said when they were doing that. Finding out that they were literally digging into the levee itself is crazy to me," she added.
And as traffic continues on the overpass, Simone thinks about the safety of drivers.
"It's terrifying because my idea is that it's undermining our road that's taking the safety of other people and putting it at jeopardy," she said.
No one was hurt and firefighters say this wasn't the first time they've been called to a fire like this.