SAN DIEGO (NEWS 8) — News 8 has a Your Stories follow-up as a massive clean-up gets underway at a sprawling homeless encampment in a Spring Valley canyon.
After a fire broke out in September, and a firefighter was injured, the property owner told us he couldn't find anyone willing to clean-up all the mess.
Following a Your Stories report, a company toured the 9 acres and Tuesday began hauling tons of junk away from the site.
Crews used machines, tow straps and their bare hands to begin clearing out the area.
Items removed included many stolen grocery cart and piles of junk left behind by homeless people over nearly a decade in the canyon.
"It's going to be a very tough job to undertake," said Spring Canyon HOA president Malcolm Gettmann who says no one wanted to take on the job, which is on the association's property.
"Fortunately, News 8 found somebody," he said.
The company iHaul stepped up after News 8's initial report and watched Chopper 8 video to help with their estimate.
On Tuesday, they began the daunting and dangerous task.
Gettman shot video of the late September fire, which came close to his condo.
A firefighter was injured during it after stepping into a bucket of feces and others risked Hepatitis A.
"They're going to literally go down in the canyon, piece-by-piece pick up those individual pieces," said Gettmann.
The cleanup will come at a $70,000 cost to the HOA
Gettmann says the homeless have been offered help.
"The county has made an effort to provide them with housing vouchers and transitional housing assistance," he said.
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