ATLANTA — A stretch of Cheshire Bridge Road remains closed as crews continue to assess the damage from a fire under the overpass.
The impacted area is near Faulkner Road. Officials are hopeful that they may be able to open at least part of the road soon. Engineers, city employees and the fire department were in the area for most of the day assessing the bridge. Firefighters believe the fire may have started with a homeless encampment under the overpass.
Residents and business owners said they had complained to the city about the encampments for months. They feel their concerns are being ignored.
11Alive got a first-hand look at the hazards at an encampment close by on Thursday.
“Where I’m at, I call it the beach. I try to keep it clean," said Ricardo, a man experiencing homelessness.
He said for the past few years, he has made an area under the bridge his home. He’s not alone. Tent after tent stretches from Peachtree Creek to the bridge.
"Right now, it’s like 25, 26 people. So, it’s like our little own city," Ricardo said.
The encampment comes with challenges.
“When you’re by water, it’s more cold and people try to start fires to keep warm. But, they just start fires, and there’s a certain way you have to do the fires,” Ricardo went on. “And when it gets big, they run because they don’t want to get locked up.”
Over the years, firefighters have responded to several fires along Cheshire Bridge Road believed to be tied to the encampments. A fire near South Fork Peachtree Creek damaged a bridge so badly in August of 2021 that it took 20 months to rebuild and fully reopen it.
Wednesday's fire was about a quarter mile away from that location. Video from under that overpass shows how people have built make-shift shelters under it.
A business owner, who asked 11Alive not to disclose his name, emailed the city in July and August to warn the city about the hazardous situation but to no avail.
“Trash and debris was created by the homeless under the bridge. It’s an extreme fire hazard," he said.
He said his 311 complaint was closed in November without the city clearing the trash.
The city told 11Alive that in the last six months, it’s placed 39 people in the encampments in homes. They continue to work to relocate more people.
In the meantime, Ricardo said most of the people experiencing homelessness try to be responsible when setting fires to stay warm.