Man goes down and films mysterious site from Google Maps after 'help' signs sparked huge concern

The mysterious 'HELP' signs in Los Angeles are causing major concerns online, as almost no one knows where they came from or how they got there.

Located at the Union Pacific railroad yard are the letters constructed from wood and old pipes near rows of shipping containers.

But what we do know is that many homeless people live at the intersection of E Cesar Chavez Ave and Mission Road, all while, the words ‘HELP,’ ‘trafico,’ and ‘LAPD’ are written in the dirt.

Now, a man online decided to go to the location for himself and film a video of the eerie scenes next to the LA bridge.

"There's a dog, there's a person. Okay, there's the 'HELP' sign right there," he says as he explores the area. "The big 'HELP'. I mean, I honestly don't know if this is just kids fooling around or something real, but you can get into the yard through there, because there's a hole in the fence right there.

"And something written right there. We'll take some photos, but I just like to believe it's just a prank.

"It's just a bunch of kids messing around, because this is, like, this is the street, and over there is where I took my first video where you can kind of see there's a hole, but all this is exposed.

"I mean, if you're writing that everybody sees you."

Amid various theories online, such as the involvement of human trafficking or illegal activity, the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) went and had a look for themselves.

After the department responded to an 'unknown trouble' call near Mission Road and the 101 Freeway on Sunday (26 January), a spokesperson said: "Upon arrival, officers conducted a thorough investigation and found no evidence of any criminal activity or threat in the area."

This comes after Jill Micek, a spokesperson for Union Pacific, accused the individual(s) of 'creating misleading messages'.

“We want to remind the public that it is illegal — and more importantly unsafe — to trespass on Union Pacific property,” Micek added.

To help get to the bottom of this, X user @LAguy310 spoke to people there and claimed: “OK so apparently Jose (a homeless person) is writing all the HELP signs.”

However, the LAPD responded to his tweet, noting that the signs have been on Google Earth since 2023.

They wrote: "We’ve had several different contacts with the individual you speak of. He has refused housing or a mental health evaluation. There is no evidence of Human Trafficking. He has been at the location for a few years."

Union Pacific added: "A man trespassed on Union Pacific and other nearby properties to repeatedly create these misleading messages. We do know the individual that creates these, does so on neighbouring properties as well."

So, there you have it.

LADbible has contacted the LAPD for additional comment.