By DJ Becker / The Madera News May 17th, 2022
A small vegetation fire on the north side of the Madera River Trail near the Schnoor bridge began about 4:30 pm Tuesday and was quickly blown by gusty winds across the riverbed to the south side where it burned into wooden fences and destroyed two homes in the 1700 block of Riverview Drive. Winds at the time of the fire were gusting between 20 and 30 mph according to reports. The cause of the fire remains under investigation but residents suspect the many homeless people living in the brush of the riverbed.
Both residents were home at the time and said they barely had moments to grab a few belongings before the fire burned through their fences and reached the back of their homes. One resident did not even have time to move his cars from his driveway before his house was engulfed in flames, right before his eyes. No injuries were reported but another resident who neighbors said was reluctant to leave his home reportedly lost two dogs in the flames.
Frustrated area residents gathered after the fire on Wednesday to console each other and said they had been long battling with the City of Madera and Code Enforcement and other agencies to try and remove or relocate the many drug-addicted or mentally ill homeless people camping next to their back property lines. “This was only a matter of time,” said one adjacent neighbor who gave his name as Mike, “This could have been prevented … it didn’t have to happen if the brush and vegetation had been mowed down or better taken care of. What do we have to do? Every single one of us living next to the overgrown riverbed is still at risk of losing our homes. ”
Another angry resident of Riverview asked out loud “What would have happened if this fire had broken out at night? More houses would have been lost. People would have died, that’s what.”
Area residents said they were planning to attend that evening’s city council meeting and let their representatives and their city officials know that the combination of neglecting the overgrowth in the riverbed and the homeless camping in the tinder-dry brush was an obvious disaster and that something has to be changed.
Two homes were completely lost before the wind-driven fire could be stopped. Another adjacent home had minor exterior damage and others experienced interior smoke damage from the heavy smoke plume.
