SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Neighbors in the Lemon Hill neighborhood are speaking out after a fire tore through a homeless encampment, just feet from a home on Pradera Mesa Drive.
They say the homeless first started congregating in the area two years ago and the numbers have been growing ever since.
"We find hypodermic needles out here all the time now," explained homeowner Lee Burgos.
Burgos said he can see directly into the encampment from his front door.
"There's always yelling and screaming coming from over there. It's just not a good situation," Burgos said.
Burgos said he used to make his water available to the homeless. Now, especially in light of the fire, he said things have deteriorated to the point where he just wants them gone.
"It makes me angry that the community here that embraced them, and tried to help them, is now being ruined because of their inability to have proper hygiene and proper respect for the properties that surround them," admitted Burgos.
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He said the fire Tuesday night was the last straw.
"We want them gone, but we don't know how to do it in a proper, legal way or in a way that's compassionate. I mean, they're human," said Burgos.
Neighbor Armani Reyes believes he knows why the homeless have chosen to camp right outside his door.
"I think it's because of the aqueduct or the levy or whatever it's called," said Reyes. "That it's an ease of access, you know. There's not a big cop presence out here."
Reyes said the police or California Highway Patrol (CHP) will come through, but said it's infrequent. He says he was scared for his home and his pets when the fire broke out. Still, he's not surprised.
"I wonder...why it took so long for this to happen," said Reyes. "It was kind of a thing that was building up. You see the camps. You see the batteries. You see them coming in and out. You know they're not wiring everything the way they should and it was just a matter of time."
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