‘Ducks swimming with propane’: Resident concerned with encampment at Vancouver’s Vanier Park

A Kitsilano resident has serious concerns with an encampment that has popped up in Vancouver’s Vanier Park forested area.

“My friend, who’s with the Hancock Wildlife Foundation, let me know about this situation down here a few days ago,” Elvira Lount said.

“She has been tracking the eagles, who seem to be trying to settle in the nest (nearby).”

The encampment has one large structure and a large tent, with the area littered with garbage and multiple propane tanks, something that has Lount concerned as a serious fire hazard.

“One looks at least 400 square feet. This is not your normal tents,” Lount said.

“It’s a permanent camp…and it’s in a forested bio-diverse area. There is pollution in the pond… there are ducks swimming around with propane tanks in the water.”

Lount runs a online community group called “Keep Kits Beach Wild” on Facebook.

The resident said the eagles are likely not going to be nesting in the designated nest the park board erected a few years ago due to the disturbance.

“There is a fire hazard, there are about five propane tanks around the tents, and there is garbage everywhere,” she said. The city has to come out here and clean this up. The city and the police should dismantle the camp and find these people somewhere to live.”

Global News talked to an encampment inhabitant on Saturday.

He said he and another man are living in the structures and have been living in the area for years.

Global News reached out to the Vancouver Park Board for comment.

“The Vancouver Board of Parks and Recreation is aware of a temporary structure and debris in Vanier Park and is working on addressing community concerns,” a spokesperson said in an email.

“Situations such as these are extremely complex, and require coordination with our City partners, including Homelessness Services Outreach, Sanitation and Fire and Rescue Services, to support the transition.”

Vancouver Fire Rescue Services’ chief Karen Fry said they will be reviewing the situation with Vancouver police and the park board next week.