Smoke clouded swaths of Los Angeles for a sixth day Monday, after a fire broke out at a warehouse in the Boyle Heights area.
The stubborn blaze was reported Wednesday around 2:30 p.m. on the roof of a 500,000-square-foot cold food storage facility on South Los Palos Street. It prompted shelter-in-place orders and the declaration of a state of emergency over the weekend.
The fire is still actively producing smoke and impacting air quality throughout the region, the South Coast Air Quality Management District said in a statement Sunday — extending its particle pollution advisory into Monday morning.
The agency said its sensors showed air particulates had reached “very unhealthy” levels over the weekend, in the areas of central Los Angeles County, San Gabriel Valley, east San Fernando Valley and northwest San Bernardino Valley.
Smoke was predicted to impact areas north and east of the fire until Monday morning, it added. Local residents were urged to limit their exposure by remaining indoors with their windows and doors closed and advised to run air conditioning or air purifying units, where possible.
“Residents have lived through days of smoke, shelter-in-place orders, disruptions to daily life, and ongoing questions about what this means for their health and well-being,” said Ysabel Jurado, the council member who represents Boyle Heights.
“I will continue pushing every level of government to bring the resources this community needs so that emergency response, air monitoring, hazardous debris removal, environmental remediation, and public health protections move forward with urgency,” Jurado added.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom issued a state of emergency Saturday in response to the fire.
“California is mobilizing to support Los Angeles as firefighters and emergency personnel continue their work to contain this fire and protect surrounding communities,” Newsom said in a news release. “While local officials continue to lead this response, the State of California is prepared to safeguard public health, support emergency operations, and assist impacted residents.”
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass also declared a local emergency Saturday.
“This is a major, multi-jurisdictional incident. I’m issuing an emergency declaration to ensure the City has the resources it needs as this operation continues and to keep the community safe,” she said in a statement.
“The City and County have opened spaces for families seeking relief from the smoke, and we will continue working around the clock and doing everything possible to put this fire out completely.”
The site is used by Lineage, a cold storage and logistics company, which said it would donate $2 million to the nonprofit California Community Foundation to help those impacted by the fire.
“Lineage’s top priority is the health and safety of our team members, partners, and the communities in which we live and operate,” the company said. “We are also continuing to work with local officials on providing air purifiers, food and other resources to the community,” it added.
The company said in a statement it did not own the warehouse. “We are the tenant-operator of the warehouse building and lease the roof to a third-party solar company, which is responsible for operating and maintaining the array. We believe the fire originated on the roof on Wednesday while the company’s subcontractors were servicing the solar array,” it said.
No investigation into the fire’s start has yet begun.
The Los Angeles Fire Department said Sunday it was making “significant progress” to battle the blaze and that its crews had removed sections of the exterior wall allowing for more effective access to interior fire areas, giving them the ability to apply large volumes of water.
“Smoke conditions have improved significantly and are expected to continue improving as firefighters make progress extinguishing the fire,” it said. “Although smoke conditions are trending in a positive direction, intermittent increases in smoke may occur as crews open walls and other concealed spaces to locate and extinguish hidden fire.”
Images on social media showed the smoke shrouding the Dodger Stadium on Sunday, creating “an acrid, nasty haze,” posted Ben Bolch, a California Post senior college sports reporter.
“Not sure I’d want to sit here and watch as a fan, much less play the game, unless conditions improve,” he added. The haze later cleared with the game going ahead.
