LOUISVILLE, Ky. — One day after a fire sparked at a houseless encampment, some community members are taking decisive action to make sure similar tragedies never happen again.
Louisville Fire crews responded to the tent fire, located underneath an I-65 overpass near South Brook and East College streets Tuesday morning, finding one person had died and another had been injured in connection with the incident.
"It's insufferable. It's unthinkable," Rev. Gerome Sutton, executive director of Louisville African American Think Tank, said. "Someone right here burned to death. In our city. And I know our city is better than that."
Those who are houseless typically start fires to fight through the bitter cold, an outreach advocate told WHAS11 Tuesday, but they've recently turned more deadly as people are forced to fend for themselves.
Sutton, surrounded by three other members of West Chestnut Street Baptist Church, said they're now accepting clothing donations to hand out to people living on Louisville streets.
"People in the west end oughta' be alarmed as people in the east end," he said. "Maybe if he would have had some flannel pajamas, he wouldn't have died."
The cause of the fire Tuesday is still under investigation but the group from West Chestnut Baptist said they believe it was preventable, which is why they're now raising donations and awareness.
"It touched my heart because it didn't have to be [that way]," DeAnna Daniels of West Chestnut Baptist Church, said. "Perhaps if he had the necessary layers of clothing, shelter, then we wouldn't even be here discussing this at all."
West Chestnut Street Baptist Church will hold clothing drives Thursday, between 11 a.m. and 5 p.m., and Friday, between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m.
Daniels said the church, located at 1725 W Chestnut St., is specifically asking for pajama donations.
"I can only imagine what the last moments of this man's life felt like," Shemeaka Shaw, of West Chestnut Baptist Church, said. "That extra layer of clothing would really make a difference."
Shaw, who said she's formerly homeless, criticized the city's efforts to help those who are houseless.
"[The streets] is the only homes they know but you don't offer them any alternatives," she said. "[Mayor] Greenberg just inherited [the issue], and I'm just sitting back wondering 'What is he going to do about these different situations?'"
In a statement, Kevin Trager, press secretary for Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg, told WHAS11 the following Tuesday:
"We are saddened by the tragic death of a houseless individual [Tuesday]. Metro's Homeless Services team works every day to connect people with permanent housing resources. They also work to prevent public safety hazards like open fires that are often found at encampments. This year, our team has helped secure housing for more than 30 people living on the street. We will continue our efforts to prevent tragedies like the one [Tuesday]."
"They're not going to save us; we gotta' save us," Shaw said. "So that's why we're asking the community, the compassionate city, to have some compassion for our brother who burned to death just trying to stay warm."
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