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For Maggie Bechamp, the problem with the hoarder next door wasn’t the mass of boxes and furniture spilling out the front door and occupying the porch. It wasn’t the potential fire when he lit candles for warmth near his mountain of flammable belongings.

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It was the collection of feral cats.

“They’re everywhere. They dig things up. They defecate everywhere,” said Ms. Bechamp, who added that the occupant had always seemed neighbourly.

On Wednesday, a court order allowed a slew of Toronto Fire Services personnel clad in white Hazmat suits to enter the premises at 313 Manor Rd. in Mount Pleasant and remove material deemed “combustible.”

The occupant had been living on the porch – in a homemade enclosure – in the two years since the house was boarded off to deal with the hoarding of materials inside. He remained on the property during the cleanup, often expressing his displeasure by shouting and cursing at the crew.