Trash fires in homeless encampment cause temporary closure of Buford Highway bridge

Caption

The scene on Buford Highway after a fire under the Peachtree Creek bridge forced the road closure in both directions for more than two hours.

Credit: Brookhaven Police Department

Multiple calls to 911 sent the Brookhaven Police Department, Atlanta Police Department, and Atlanta Fire and Rescue Department to a bridge at the intersection of Lenox Road and Buford Highway on Feb. 11. 

Buford Highway was closed to vehicles for several hours until the Georgia Department of Transportation inspected the bridge before reopening traffic. 

A series of five small trash fires were discovered in a homeless encampment from the bridge to Lenox Road. “Due to the length and width of the fire, the amount of debris and duration, road was closed and bridge inspectors called to check any issues with the bridge,” according to a report from Atlanta Fire and Rescue.

The report states there was an “astronomical amount of trash under the bridge and surrounding areas.” The ignition of the fires was undetermined after investigation.

Brookhaven city officials were not immediately available for comment. 

In December 2023, a bridge caught fire on Cheshire Bridge Road closed, and last month a fire set by unsheltered residents burned behind a Brookhaven day care facility.  

This story comes to GPB through a reporting partnership with Rough Draft Atlanta.