California construction workers find two people living in cave

A resident saw sleeping bags, backpacks, and clothing being removed from the cave. Photo / Fairfield Fire Department

Construction workers rebuilding a bridge in the San Francisco Bay Area on Friday unexpectedly found two people living in a cave dug into an embankment, authorities said.

Crews were excavating at the site of the old bridge in Vallejo when they heard voices and switched off their digging equipment, Tom Walker, the project manager for the city, told the San Francisco Chronicle.

They discovered a cave about 6m by 0.9m high in the side of the embankment.

"We called in the police and fire departments to make sure we didn't injure anyone" in relocating the occupants, Walker said. "It's a rescue operation."

Vallejo resident Albert Wong, who lives a half block from the site, said he saw rescue workers remove sleeping bags, clothing, backpacks and other personal items from the cave.

“It was a lot of stuff,” he said. https://t.co/d62LDCUaH6

— San Francisco Chronicle (@sfchronicle) March 27, 2021

Dozens of police, firefighters and rescue workers converged on the bridge a half-mile north of downtown Vallejo, the Chronicle said.

Vallejo resident Albert Wong said he saw sleeping bags, backpacks, clothing and other items being removed from the cave.

"It was a lot of stuff," he said.

"It's really common to have homeless encampments under bridges but this is the first time I've seen something like this," Walker said.

Construction workers last week began rebuilding a decades-old two-lane bridge that serves Mare Island and hope to have the new span finished by year's end, Walker said.

Mare Island is about 37km northeast of San Francisco.

- AP