Portland Police Investigate Death at Harbor View Park Homeless Encampment

The Portland Police Department announced Friday morning that they are investigating a death at the city’s largest homeless encampment underneath the Casco Bay Bridge.

[RELATED: Portland City Officials Provide Update on 120-Tent, Rat-Infested Homeless Encampment Under Casco Bay Bridge…]

Shortly after 9 p.m. Thursday, Portland Police responded to a report of an unresponsive male at 232 York Street — Harbor View Park.

Upon arrival, officers were taken to the Commercial Street side of the park next to a support under the bridge, where they located a deceased 52-year-old male inside of a tent.

Police say the investigation into the death is ongoing, and is not considered suspicious.

Current city data reports a total of 208 tents throughout Portland — approximately 120 of which are located in the Harbor View Park encampment.

At a Nov. 21 Portland City Council meeting, Police Chief Mark Dubois said there have been almost 200 calls for service to the Harbor View encampment, which grew significantly after the sweep of the Marginal Way Park and Ride Encampment on Nov. 1.

[RELATED: Maine ACLU Says Failed Proposal to Legalize Portland Homeless Encampments with Frequent Overdoses, Assaults, and Rapes Would Have Been “Positive First Step”…]

During the same meeting, Portland Fire Chief Keith Gautreau described a fire at the Harbor View encampment that resulted in dark smoke negatively impacting visibility on the bridge and roadways.

On Sunday, the Portland Police found a deceased person inside of a burning tent along the northbound lane of I-295 — one of two homeless individuals found dead inside burning tents that weekend, the other being in Sanford.