PORTLAND, Ore. — The smell of hot, sour garbage could be tasted throughout a Southeast Portland neighborhood on Monday. It was the result of an RV that caught on fire Sunday night. The charred debris remained piled on the side of the road late into next evening.
However, the neighbors around Southeast 162nd and Division Street said they weren’t surprised. “You think of the propane, the drugs, it’s a matter of time,” said one woman who wanted to remain anonymous.
The RV, which neighbors said two homeless people stayed in, burned down Sunday around 6 p.m. Portland firefighters said when they responded it was “fully engulfed in flames.” It’s unclear how the fire started, but a spokesperson for Portland Fire & Rescue said no one was injured or inside the RV at the time.
Despite KGW’s efforts, the crew could not find the homeless couple who once stayed there.
Mark Shipley gets medical care nearby. His brother tried to stop the fire from spreading.
“(He) jumped out and tried to, you know, spray the flames. And by then the heat was so hot it was burning the back of my head and back, and he ended up getting his arms burnt," Shipley said. "Right after we left it exploded, so we just barely missed that."
The fire didn’t only destroy the RV, it also scorched surrounding power lines and took down Jessie Olvera’s fence and burned parts of his yard.
“Thankfully, the fire department got here when they did because it took a good chunk out of my yard and could have got to my house,” Olvera said.
It was a close call, and neighbors like Olvera believe it could have been avoided.
“I had called the city about a dozen times about that particular trailer, and nothing was ever done about it,” Olvera said.
“We’ve continuously called the police and still there has been no movement whatsoever. It gets to be quite frustrating,” added the neighbor who wanted to remain anonymous.
A spokesperson for the Portland Police Bureau said they have received six calls since June from a nearby address about the problematic RV and have responded numerous times. Portland city crews told KGW the debris should be removed within 48 hours.