VIRGINIA BEACH — A homeless man is in the hospital being treated for minor smoke inhalation after starting a fire inside a sewer drain.
It all started with a call dispatchers received around 2:17 p.m. Tuesday. The report: Passersby saw smoke coming out from a sewer drain just off Oceana Boulevard.
It’s near the spot where people watch jets land at Naval Air Station Oceana, said Art Kohn, spokesman for the Virginia Beach Fire Department.
“Firefighters responding to the call discovered a homeless man in the sewer,” Kohn said. “He said he climbed down there to get warm. He apparently started a small fire for heat and people passing by the sewer cover saw smoke rising from below.”
Firefighters went down the sewer drain to check if there was anyone else there.
“The man came out of the sewer covered in soot and was transported to a local hospital to be treated for minor smoke inhalation,” Kohn said. “The rescue crews that investigated the sewer confirmed that the fire was out and there was no one else down there.”
The fire did not pose any threat to Oceana and base officials were notified of the situation, Kohn said.
Information on the man’s condition and his identity was not immediately available.
