SAN ANTONIO — It's a corner lot in a ragtag east side subdivision where nicely kept new homes are juxtaposed next to structures in various stages of disrepair.
But even by the lax standards of Wayne Drive, people who live near the corner of Winneway say the home obscured by a thick wall of vegetation is one-of-a-kind.
Neighbor Kelley Duke, who said she has probably filed more than 30 complaints with the city about the condition of the property, said "This makes me think I'm in a third world country. I don't what's worse than horrific! It's totally unbelievable!".
Duke, and others, said they are renewing their efforts to get the city to take enforcement action against the property owner after an explosion and fire early Saturday morning.
One woman who lives half-way down the block said "We heard the big boom. I mean, it was a very loud boom and you just see the flames shooting up in the air."
The fire department incident commander said the conditions they encountered were hard to describe, calling the dilapidated structure "a work in progress."
Chief John Castillo said "It's almost like a cinder block garage make shift home, a home built by the actual owner," adding the structure had numerous code violations.
"This house is not wired appropriately so CPS had to pull the meter. They were doing a lot of electrical work that was not done professionally," Castillo said.
Castillo said although the neighbors reported hearing an explosion, the conditions they found were in such a state of disarray, it was hard to tell what happened.
"Our guys were not able to make entry because we had a second floor collapse. It burned through. We don't know the cause (of the fire) on the second floor because the collapse happened prior to our arrival."
Castillo said they found one occupant on scene, who managed to escape without injury.
Beyond the structural challenges, neighbors said the house is the subject of frequent police calls because even though the house apparently had no utility service, it appeared to be home to an ever-changing group of vagrants.
One neighbor who watched firefighters battle the flames said "In many ways it's been a campsite for homeless people, day and night. You see them up and down the street with their little carts and it's beyond a garbage dump. They've had the city down there called on them multiple times and we have to live next to it."
Duke, who is immediately next door, said she maintains a hedge on her fence line so she doesn't have to look at the mess.
"I have been calling since May or June of last year. Because it's just gotten so bad," adding in addition to dangerous people, there are numerous significant health threats. "We had sewage draining right here by this fence and it stunk so bad when we walked out here!" Duke said.
Looking at the city's 311 website for active cases, Duke said she can't understand why there's only one listing for a complaint about an overgrown lot.
"There is so much more than an overgrown lot going on over here! I can't even begin to explain everything. They live without power! They burn things all the time, and as a matter of fact last night I had to make a call for burning because they were in the backyard, at 10:00 or 10:30 last night and I had to call the fire department out again," Duke said.
Duke said she was told a judge had issued an order to vacate the premise months ago, yet people continue to camp there.
"I understand they can't physically make them vacate but why not? An order is an order!" Duke exclaimed with exasperation.
Duke said there was a half-hearted cleanup effort last August when several trailer loads of trash were hauled away but conditions worsened again almost immediately.
"We were told it would be one month before demolition but here we are in May and it's still standing and there's still trash everywhere," Duke said.
KENS 5 asked the city's Code Compliance division for an interview or statement on current conditions and plans early Monday. At the close of business Tuesday, we received the following:
“The Code Enforcement Officers have been actively working with the residents of this property for the past eight months. They have issued notices regarding the accumulation of trash and debris at the property. Relocation assistance has been offered to the residents. As soon as the property is released by SAFD, an inspection to assess the integrity of the structure will be conducted."
The city does encourage residents who encounter code violations to report the using the 311 reporting system.
It is possible to track active cases online as well, to see if a problem in your area is being addressed.