‘They can’t break me’: Resident defiant after encampment burns Tent, sleeping bag, belongings gone after ‘deliberate’ fire near Assiniboine River By: Scott Billeck Posted: 6:26 PM CDT Monday, Sep. 29, 2025 Last Modified: 7:31 PM CDT Monday, Sep. 29, 2025 Updates

An encampment resident who lives along the banks of the Assiniboine River believes her shelter was deliberately set on fire Sunday night.

The woman, who is not being named to protect her privacy, said she lost everything — including a tent and sleeping bag she had just received from a nearby outreach group.

“I have nothing left,” she said on Monday, noting she now shares a tent with a friend at Mostyn Place Park behind the Granite Curling Club. “I wasn’t there at the time. It was deliberate. It wouldn’t be the first time it happened to me.”

Her friend, who also asked not to be named, said fires like this aren’t unusual. He said it’s happened to him twice in one year, for the same reason.

“Jealousy,” he said.

Farther west along the walking path that winds through the riverbank, a scorched patch down the embankment at the end of Spence Street remained.

“It’s scary,” said another encampment resident, whose tent was several feet away from the fire.

That individual, who also declined to have their name published, said they’ve been living in the area for a couple of weeks after losing their housing.

The city confirmed Monday that Winnipeg Fire Paramedic Service crews were sent to a fire on the riverbank in the first 100 block of Spence Street Sunday at 8:30 p.m. The blaze was quickly extinguished and no injuries were reported, a city spokesperson said.

A request for comment from a member of the Winnipeg Fire Paramedic Service executive went unanswered.

The Free Press was told that concerns about this encampment had been raised with both the WFPS and the city as recently as last week.

“They’ve tried everything to try and break me, but they can’t. I’ll be fine.”

The woman who lost her shelter said it’s the third time this year an encampment in that spot has gone up in flames.

On the ground, a blackened tree trunk, a melted recycling bin, twisted tent poles and charred scraps of clothing marked the burn site.

“Everything is gone. Everything I’ve gathered over the past two years… I’ve been staying down there since March,” the woman said, adding that her clothes, bed, and blankets had all been reduced to rubble. “But they can’t break me. They’ve tried everything to try and break me, but they can’t. I’ll be fine.”

A nearby resident posted a photo to Reddit of the blaze from their balcony and said they heard a couple of “pops” and immediately knew what was happening.

“It happens every year,” said the resident, who asked not to be named, adding that it sounded like bombs were going off.

He supports the idea of a sanctioned space for encampment residents.

“A sanctioned encampment site on the legislature grounds, which is not very far away from (the encampments behind Granite Curling Club and Mostyn Place Park), would be a suitable place to “showcase to the world” what we are doing here in Manitoba to take care of their own,” he said.

He feels a site on the legislature grounds would also compel politicians who have to look at it every day to do more to address the growing issue.

“Right now, it’s being hidden. It’s being tucked away. We’re turning a blind eye to it,” he said. “All we are doing is spinning our wheels.”

Last week, the city approved a motion from Coun. Cindy Gilroy (Daniel McIntyre) to ban encampments in public spaces, including playgrounds, spray pads, community gardens, pools and community centre spaces designed for children and families.

Later Monday, the woman whose tent went up in flames had secured a new one, thanks to a helper. She planned to visit an outreach organization on Tuesday to try and get another sleeping bag.

“I haven’t decided (where I will go now),” she said.

Beside her friend’s tent was a shopping cart full of items that the woman had scrounged up from bins earlier that morning.

“I’ll be fine,” she said.

scott.billeck@freepress.mb.ca