On Thursday, city crews cleared the encampment by Bruce Vento Nature Sanctuary, citing concerns over safety, fire danger and cleanliness.

Against bone-chilling cold, Jose Ismael squatted next to a makeshift campfire within the Bruce Vento Nature Sanctuary in St. Paul on Wednesday, contemplating where he and dozens of others living in the sprawling tent encampment around him would end up the next day.

Since that encampment went up in August of 2023, city leaders say police have responded to more than 400 calls there, and 50 calls for fire and medical help.

Vang leaned into the blue and gray tent he’s called home in recent years, grabbed a piece of clothing and held it over an open fire to watch it burn. The 54-year-old who declined to share his last name is from Laos but grew up in Wisconsin.