Toronto has a big problem on their hands: Fires breaking out in homeless encampments.
Last night, a man suffered burn injuries after propane tanks were tossed into a fire at an encampment in Liberty Village, causing several explosions and three tents to go up in flames.
Last weekend, fire crews responded to nine fires at encampments.
Chief Matthew Pegg says the city has looked at providing safety tools and training to those living in encampments but it wouldn't lessen the risk.
"The reality is this: The materials that are commonly collected and stockpiled, if you will, in encampments represent an imminent and immediate threat to life and that is things like we saw last night with compressed gases like propane and other materials," he explains. "The issue is, if you find yourself in a tent or in one of the polystyrene domes or the small makeshift shelters and a fire ignites, I can tell you from personal experience there will be no time to escape let alone look for, find, and deploy a fire extinguisher."
The city says it is focusing its resources on getting people indoors.
It should be noted that no one at the encampment last night accepted the offer for shelter.