Los Angeles County and city officials along with representatives from Lineage Logistics faced a tense audience Thursday in Boyle Heights, as community members sought answers on recovery efforts and support for residents following a massive fire at a warehouse facility that has caused concerns about local air quality and public health.
During the evening meeting, LA Mayor Karen Bass said she plans to spend more time in Boyle Heights, including at night, after residents reported odors from Lineage’s warehouse get worse after dark.
Bass and Hilda Solis, LA County Board of Supervisors chair whose District 1 includes Boyle Heights and East Los Angeles communities, were booed by visibly angry residents.
The mayor apologized to the audience at Stevenson Middle School for the confusion surrounding the city’s response, acknowledging that the smoke generated by the fire was harmful. Bass promised multiple environmental investigations into the blaze that burned for eight days the Lineage cold storage warehouse at 1400 S. Los Palos St.
She also pledged to survey warehouses throughout LA’s Eastside, South Los Angeles and the San Fernando Valley for possible environmental hazards and risks, while holding Lineage and other businesses accountable for harm caused to adjacent communities.
Jeff Rivera, chief operations officer for Lineage Global, also apologized.
“I’m sorry for the disruption this has caused,” Rivera told community members.
He said the company was expanding the fire response by doing door-to-door outreach with people who live closest to the warehouse and providing housing assistance via 211 LA, grocery vouchers, cash financial aid, air conditioners, air purifiers and assistance paying utility bills.
Rivera also announced plans to launch a community support hotline this week.
He estimated 200 workers were doing cleanup work around the clock and approximately 1.4 million pounds of fire-damaged material has been removed thus far, another 3.2 million pounds is staged for removal and demolition has begun.
According to Rivera, the city’s 45-day goal for completing cleanup efforts was aggressive, noting similar fires can require as long as six months for remediation.
During the public comment portion of the meeting, residents questioned the city’s response, medical care, relocation assistance and the potential long-term health effects of the fire.
Boyle Heights resident Maria Lopez urged officials to experience the conditions firsthand, saying, “I would like for you to come sleep where we sleep, so you can experience what we have to go through.”
Other meeting attendees wondered why the facility should be allowed to reopen, complained about communication failures and demanded stronger protections for surrounding communities. Residents also asked why lessons apparently had not been learned after a 2024 fire at the same warehouse.
Officials from the South Coast Air Quality Management District told meeting attendees that monitoring during the fire found no elevated levels of metals or hydrogen fluoride.
According to Solis’s office, county staff, volunteers and community organizations have distributed more than 10,000 air purifiers, plus N95 masks, food, water and other essential supplies.
“Emergency relief is only the beginning,” Solis said in a statement following the community meeting. “Lineage and all responsible parties must provide transparency, a comprehensive cleanup plan, a clear recovery timeline, continued health and air quality monitoring, and resources for residents, workers, and businesses impacted by this disaster.
“This fire also raises larger questions about how industrial facilities of this size are located, regulated, and monitored near residential communities,” Solis said. “A fire that took more than a week to fully extinguish exposed the serious risks of inadequate protections, planning, and oversight. I support Mayor Bass’s call for a comprehensive review of facilities like Lineage to ensure current safeguards and land use decisions are protecting public health and safety.”
East LA and Boyle Heights have suffered environmental injustice for generations and “should not have to carry the burden of recovery alone,” Solis added, pledging to “continue using every tool available to the county to secure accountability and deliver the support these communities deserve.”
Not long before the meeting Thursday, Lineage announced these community support and incident recovery efforts:
- vouchers for short-term hotel and rental assistance for “residents who choose to temporarily relocate during the cleanup and remediation process”;
- delivery of more air purifiers, air conditions and masks to residents, with company officials saying they have already distributed more than 600 air purifiers and 2,000 masks as part of its earlier community donation;
- provision of grocery vouchers redeemable at the Food4Less store at 3654 Olympic Blvd.;
- cash assistance provided through pre-paid cards; and
- support to assist residents with payments of Los Angeles Department of Water and Power utility bills.
staff, volunteers, and community partners, we have distributed more than 10,000 air purifiers, along with N95 masks, food, water, and other essential supplies.
Lineage representatives estimated the company has provided 7,000 meals to community members through a partnership with the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank.
“The people living and working in the community deserve timely results and meaningful support,” Lineage CEO Greg Lehmkuhl said in a statement. “Over the last several days, we have been meeting with local elected officials and engaging community organizations and leaders to understand how we can best help our neighbors. At the same time, demolition is underway and cleanup is progressing. Right now, our top priority is simple: get this site cleaned up as quickly and safely as possible.”
The fire broke out June 17 and lasted eight days, prompting the city, county and state to issue local emergency declarations. A huge amount of smoke from the fire prompted warnings for people who live nearby to stay inside.
The cause of the fire is under investigation by multiple state and local agencies. Lineage officials have said they believe the fire broke out while a subcontractor working for Altus Power, which owns the solar energy equipment on top of the building, was conducting tests on solar panels.
A statement from Altus Power said the company’s “first concern is for the community affected by the fire, and we’re deeply grateful to the firefighters and first responders for their efforts. We’re in touch with local officials and are cooperating fully with their ongoing investigation into this fire.”
According to Lineage, demolition work on the building started Monday amid ongoing work to remove the 85 million pounds of rotting food, along with other debris. The company hired experts to deal with the vermin that are targeting the tons of rotting food.
Company representatives said Thursday they hope to meet the debris removal goal of 45 days.
“In addition to core demolition and debris removal, Lineage has wrapped portions of the building with a temporary enclosure barrier to help contain debris, reduce odors and dampen noise for neighboring residents,” according to a statement from the company, which is headquartered in Michigan near Detroit.
“Misting systems are operating continuously around the building exterior to further reduce smells,” according to Lineage. “Cleanup crews remain on site around the clock. …
“Lineage is committed to providing regular cleanup updates to the community through its website, social media, door-to-door outreach, printed flyers and ongoing community meetings.”
For the updated information on cleanup progress and community resources including medical care, the company provided the webpage onelineage.com/lospalos.
