An Unsheltered Fire

A unique and shocking fictional story (based on facts) of the growing discontent of the Portland, Oregon and Vancouver, Washington areas. A story of city government, policy-making, the rights and wrongs done, and the fates of several families who have lost children, who decide to take matters into their own hands.

In the early 2020s, just after the Covid pandemic, homelessness in Portland has grown exponentially. Across the river, Vancouver homelessness is rising. These cities are unprepared to address this problem. Crime has spread through all downtown neighborhoods. Parts of both cities are burning. A new methamphetamine mix has hit the streets. An ineffectual law reigns in the City of Roses. And a storm of change is brewing.

The Norton's were a tight family, successful in that middle class way that American families have thrived in past decades. Not rich, not perfect, but together. The combination of drugs and homelessness deals them a tragedy they could never be prepared for. They grieve, they meet violence with violence, they protect their family and others. An growing community of people throughout the area are weary of the violence, crime and drugs and decide to do something. That something isn't legal, it isn't ethical, it may not be right.