PORTLAND, Maine — Police are investigating the death of a man in Portland.
The man's body was found at about 6:28 a.m. near a unhoused encampment on the intersection of Franklin Street and Marginal Way on Monday morning, according to Portland police spokesperson Brad Nadeau.
For the people who live in the unhoused encampment, they describe the man who was found as young and struggling with drug addiction. They also said he was kind and would give things away.
"Me and him talked and talked and talked and I'm going to miss that," Bruce Cavallaro, who is unhoused, said.
Cavallaro said he and the deceased are both from Buxton, and formed a strong friendship.
Hours before the man was found dead, Cavallaro said the man gave him his sunglasses.
"He had given them to me but he had just gotten them... I don't know why but it feels good to have them," Cavallaro said.
Cavallaro said he knew the man was addicted to heroin and was struggling to break clean.
Cavallaro believes what killed the man was an overdose.
And while the cause of death for the man is to be determined by the medical examiner, drug use has been a concern in the unhoused community, especially for those who are alone and isolated.
According to data from the Portland Police Department, overdoses for January through May of 2023 are higher than any reporting period since before the pandemic.
A total of 222 overdoses and 19 overdose deaths were reported in the last five months, compared to 187 and 18, respectively, in 2022.
"I think the people of Portland are waking up and really realizing what is going on," Cavallaro said.
The man who died was discovered on the other side of the street from the encampment. He was reportedly panhandling Sunday evening.
For Kevin, a man who did not want to give his last name, he is unhoused and lives in the patch of grass where the man's body was discovered.
"He was a kind person," Kevin said.
Kevin said he'd known the man who died for more than two years. He also believes it was an overdose and said he offered the man some of his shelter the night he died.
"If you're going to use you should do it with a friend or make sure someone knows you are around while you are doing it," Kevin said.
Preble Street workers said the more isolated people are the more prone to injuries and death they can be when unhoused.
"stimgitization and isolation are very damaging and they're hard," Caroline Fernandes, who is the Health and Human Services Director for Preble Street, said.
Fernandes said the clearing of encampments, such as the Bayside Encampment, may have prevented impending health issues but the scattering of unhoused people in Portland can lead to increases of isolation.
"It's not good to continue to push people to the outskirts where we don't know how they're doing or what supports they might need," She said.
According to a news release issued Monday morning, Nadeau said the death does not appear to be suspicious, and the cause of death would be determined by the chief medical examiner's office.
This story is developing and will be updated as more information becomes available.