Vernon homeless encampment busted up for safety reasons

The provincial government is putting an end to a homeless camp in Vernon after the occupants refused to leave earlier this winter.

The encampment is next to a creek adjacent to Highway 97 at the north end of the city on property owned by the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure.

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The ministry says the campers were forced to leave for safety reasons.

“The safety and well-being of the individuals is of utmost concern to this ministry, and we were concerned about snow and related road material hitting the camp when road maintenance was being conducted during snow storms,” states an email response to Global Okanagan News inquiries.

The homeless people were given advance notice and a few days later another 48 hours to remove their property.

The large amount of items that were left were being cleaned up Friday morning for disposal.