A vegetation fire that broke out in the yard of a vacant San Luis Obispo home Thursday afternoon is being called suspicious because of the discovery of a suspected homeless encampment.
The fire broke out in the front yard of the home at the corner of Broad Street and Stoneridge Drive at about 12:45 p.m. and burned tall grass and other vegetation encompassing a roughly 50- by 30-foot area. Crews extinguished the fire within minutes, said San Luis Obispo Fire Department Battalion Chief Neal Berryman.
The home was not occupied at the time, and no injuries were reported.
Berryman said the home itself did not burn.
The cause of the fire remained under investigation Thursday afternoon but Berryman added that it is being considered suspicious as officials have ruled out electrical or other non-human factors.
He said a similar fire broke out at the property roughly a month ago, and firefighters at that time found evidence of people squatting on the property, which is scheduled to be demolished and redeveloped in coming months.
Anyone with information about the fire is asked to call the police department at 781-7317.
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