What PSPD is doing to help the homeless & prevent ‘warming fire’ dangers
It erupted on the eve of Thanksgiving and quickly scorched 20 acres near the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway. Monday, the cause of the tramway fire was released; a transient’s ‘warming fire’ grew out of control and caused the blaze that would shut down the Tram, and trap the man who sparked it to stave off the cold.
This fire is not an outlier, however.
“With the transient population here in the valley. It’s getting colder at night,” said Cal Fire Battalion Chief Mike Smith. “What’s happening is they’re starting warming and cooking fires and it’s catching the vegetation on fire. And we’ve had an increase in those fires since the temperatures have gone down.”
Lauren Coronado rode along with the PSPD Tuesday to see what the department is doing to address this threat and provide resources for the area’s homeless population as temperatures continue to drop.
“The nice thing about my position is I’m actually allowed to take people, like take them to the Coachella Valley Rescue Mission and drive out of the city limits and do that,” said PSPD officer Christopher Smart.
The five community officers who are tasked with patrols serve a dual purpose, but not every member of the homeless community is open to the resources offered to them.
“Less than 10 percent of the people that I contact are responsive to resources,” continued Officer Smart. “For a variety of reasons don’t want to go to a shelter or get housing… In my opinion the majority of it is drugs…Then you have other things like mental health issues..and some people just prefer to be outside.”
Responsive or not, the resources continue to be on-hand and can help those in need escape the elements.
“You’re just so hungry, you’ll do almost anything in order to fill that hunger, or you need warmth, in order to think beyond, ‘I’m cold, I’m cold, I’m cold.'” said a Michelle Fay, a local homeless woman who takes advantage of the resources offered by PSPD. “You do anything above and beyond to do what you need to do in order to survive.”
And Fay is certainly thankful for the help provided by those five community officers.
“We’re really blessed to have officers like [Christopher] Smart, to come and remind us. One step I could have forgot to do. ‘Michelle, go to the well to get your housing,'” said Fay.
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