Fire crews battled a large fire at an encampment in Minneapolis on Monday afternoon.

Minneapolis Fire Chief Bryan Tyner said the call came in around 2:15 p.m. Monday.

Firefighters were extinguishing flames for hours on 14th Avenue South and 29th Street East. A spokesperson for the Minneapolis Fire Department (MFD) said when crews initially arrived, they found tents fully engulfed in flames and propane tanks exploding.

Tyner said everyone got out safely.

“I feel like the intensity is actually kind of picking up, as far as an increase in these encampment fires and that certainly is concerning to us,” Tyner said.

These incidents are a yearly challenge in Minneapolis as those living in homelessness use propane tanks to keep warm.

“The tents are so close together. The fire spreads so fast, and so we’re looking for different strategies on how to prevent that, and we do the best we can,” Tyner said. “We also understand that people need to have heat during these times of the winter when it’s this cold, and so it’s hard to find the exact solution.”

Neighbors said these fires add to the list of safety concerns.

“I got three little boys, and there’s a whole lot of drug activity up through here,” Larita Maddox, neighbor, said. “I’m hoping that when my two-year lease is up, I get away from over here and move somewhere else because it’s not safe over here. It’s not safe at all.”

Minneapolis public works cleared what was left of the encampment Monday evening, after fire crews extinguished the flames.

Chief Tyner said there was also an encampment fire on Lake and Chicago Streets on Monday. He explained there were no injuries to his knowledge, and the encampment was not a total loss.