Campers in Lumby forced to leave because of unsafe living conditions

People staying at a campground in Lumby are upset the village is closing the site and say they will have no place to go once they are forced to leave next February.

The village of Lumby has ordered the Lions Campground to close because of safety concerns and because it has no running water or toilets.

The Village of Lumby own's the land the campground is located on but the site is operated by the Lumby Lions Club.

Last week the village ordered the Lions Club to close the campground and have everybody out by the middle of February.

In an interview on CBC Radio One's Daybreak South mayor Kevin Acton said it's not a safe place for people in the winter.

"It just really is not the best situation," he said.

"There has already been an accident in there due to the lack of lighting. A gentleman broke his neck a few weekends ago riding a bicycle late at night."

The campground residents

Darwin Klatt is one of eight people living at the campground. 

He pays $300 a month to park his motorhome at that campsite — that includes electricity.

"It's all right," he said. "As far as water and whatever, I go to my friend's house with my blue jug and have a shower over there."

Klatt owned a rural home and worked as a mechanic in Lumby but back injuries and failing health forced him to stop working. 

He could no longer take care of his property so he decided to sell and now lives at the campground, he said.

"It's not all that rough," Klatt said.

"We don't have all the amenities, but we don't really need them."

Virginia Meunier lives in a trailer at another campsite with her 3 older dogs. 

"I've looked and looked and there's nothing out there for rentals that are affordable or pet friendly," she said.

"We wouldn't be here if we had somewhere else to go." 

Meunier is prepared to spend the winter at the campground and doesn't know where she will go in February.

"We are not just transients that come up from some other town," she said.

"It's not tent city here. We all have little campers to stay in."

Finding safe homes

Mayor Acton said the village is working with the local community resource centre to find safer places for all the campground residents to move to.

"We can just do better. We can do better than having people live in that campground like that," he said.

"This is a small town that comes together. People have been coming forward and offering all sorts of alternatives."