Folsom Clears Homeless Camp With Helicopters—But Where Do People Go?

There’s a thick canopy of trees along the Humbug-Willow Creek Trail in Folsom, and for some people, that woodland shelter has been home for years. But on Thursday, that changes. Folsom Police, alongside the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, will move in from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. to clear the encampment on state-owned land—and they’re bringing a helicopter to haul away debris because the terrain is too rugged for conventional equipment.

The cleanup itself isn’t the controversial part. What’s raising eyebrows is what happens after. Colin Crossman and Joey Burnham, who’ve called this encampment home, say they received a three-day notice that remaining on the property would result in arrest for trespassing. But when asked where they’ll go, Crossman’s answer cuts to the heart of the problem:“Under a rock so they can’t see me.”Burnham, who’s lived there for 39 months, expressed fear about losing what little he has.“They can take my stuff. They can take my trash in helicopters,”he said.“If they come back and try to take my house afterwards, we’re gonna have problems.”

The core issue here isn’t enforcement—it’s what comes next. Folsom Police declined to comment on what resources or support services will be available to displaced residents. That silence is deafening when you consider the scale of the problem. Local volunteers and food bank workers, like Drew Johnson, are cautiously supportive of the cleanup but deeply concerned about the lack of a transition plan.“I just hope that there is not just a cleanup and cleanout, but that there’s a successful transition for these people in need,”Johnson said. He’s realistic about local capacity too: food banks and ministries do offer assistance, but he’s unsure whether they can handle an influx of dozens of displaced people.

Here’s what we’re left with: a helicopter evacuation of personal belongings, state property restored, and a group of vulnerable people scattered with no clear pathway to shelter or services. It’s the kind of one-sided solution that checks a box for property management but leaves the actual human problem untouched—just relocated and harder to see. The question isn’t whether Folsom should clean up the trail. It’s whether clearing an encampment without securing housing or services for those living there is actually solving anything, or just moving the crisis down the road.