St. Thomas homeless camp dismantled after ‘violent assault’: Officials

ST. THOMAS – A small homeless encampment was torn down by officials here on Wednesday after what police and municipal officials described as “a violent assault” against one person living there.

A backhoe was tearing down the final parts of the encampment Wednesday afternoon as City of St. Thomas officials issued details about the incident, during which they say a man was attacked with weapons. Police say about five people were living in the weeks-old camp on a vacant Victor Drive lot that was formerly home to a factory.

It was torn down to protect “the safety and well-being of all citizens in our community,” according to a statement issued by St. Thomas city hall’s top bureaucrat, Sandra Datars Bere.

“Regardless of how our local marginalized population ends up homeless, people deserve to be treated with dignity and understanding,” read the statement, which noted “a number of health and public safety concerns” at the encampment.

Police were called early Tuesday to what was termed a “violent assault.” One adult male was taken to hospital for treatment and St. Thomas police said Wednesday evening the investigation was ongoing.

City officials said “countless residents” have contacted St. Thomas city hall and police “for answers and a response to this growing trend” of homeless encampments. The statement added police and city officials “have deployed a number of strategies surrounding the increase in encampments in our community.”

St. Thomas police Chief Marc Roskamp noted encampments “can be unsafe and dangerous places” and said “a compassionate approach” was used to “remove and relocate these individuals.” Stolen property was among the items found there, he said.

Encampments also have cropped up across London. For the summer, city council has funded mobile depots that give people living in them daily access to things such as a washroom and food.

The London effort has drawn fire from critics who say it’ll only make the encampments more entrenched. But city politicians who backed the deposits considered it a necessary step.

“What an incredible amount of simple dignity you can give back to somebody just with those simple services,” deputy mayor Shawn Lewis said when council approved the $100,000 funding last month. “If it de-escalates the tension that’s out there just by giving back a little dignity, while it’s not a perfect solution, it’s a start.”