LAS VEGAS, Nev. (FOX5) – Every year, Clark County says its Public Works Department conducts about 1,000 homeless encampment cleanups.
On Tuesday, one of these cleanups was conducted in the storm channels near Paradise and Flamingo. It’s an area the County says they clear about four times a year.
This time, Junk Removal Company JunkMan was tasked with the job. JunkMan’s site leader wanted to remain anonymous to avoid any future retaliation.
“I applaud anybody who does this, this is not for the weak, it’s not for the weak at all,” he says.
According to Clark County, encampments that are on public property are paid for by the county, but the cost varies depending on the its size.
JunkMan’s site leader says Tuesday’s cleanup took their crew about nine hours, and that a lot of the work was done by hand.
“We just get right to it, we try to start at the biggest tunnel or biggest pile we can, and just try to bag it all and work together to get it done,” he says.
Help of Southern Nevada’s Director of Homeless Response Teams, Louis Lacey, says they’ll dispatch a team weeks in advance for the majority of cleanups Clark County is involved in.
He says the team will give occupants a heads up of what is to come, and offer them a wide range of resources, but they can’t keep up with demand.
“There are more cleanups and more homeless individuals than we have on our team, so we are always moving, always trying to keep up,” Lacey says.
JunkMan’s site leader expects occupants to rebuild the Paradise encampment within days, but Lacey says they’ll continue to show up when called.
Last month, Commissioner Tick Segerblom proposed a sales tax increase aimed at helping homelessness.
He withdrew the proposal after three commissioners expressed intent to reject it, but emphasized the need to find another solution.
As of Tuesday, A Clark County spokesperson says “Commissioner Segerblom does not have any updates to share at this moment.”
Copyright 2024 KVVU. All rights reserved.
