LA Councilwoman introduces motions to help Boyle Heights residents impacted by Lineage fire
Helping LA residents impacted by Lineage fire
City and county leaders announced new efforts to speed up the Lineage warehouse cleanup and provide relief to Boyle Heights residents and businesses. Residents say foul odors, pests and financial losses continue nearly seven weeks after the fire.
LOS ANGELES - City and county leaders are trying to bring more relief to Boyle Heights residents and businesses frustrated by the slow cleanup process.
Nearly seven weeks after the Lineage warehouse fire, some people are still facing foul odors and financial losses.
More relief could be on the way, but residents say it's been nearly two months, and they shouldn't have to wait this long for life to get back to normal.
"There's less people, people don't really go out, people have to wear a mask," one Boyle Heights resident told FOX 11 on Tuesday.
Parents in Boyle Heights continue to fight the impact of the toxic fire that sparked at the cold storage facility in June. Many are trying to find fresh air for their little ones to play.
"They don't really come out because of the smell; we were going to another park because of the smell," a parent told FOX 11.
"Residents did not cause this disaster but were forced to suffer its consequences," said Councilmember Ysabel Jurado.
On Tuesday, Councilmember Jurado announced a series of motions that aim to provide immediate relief from odors and pests and to accelerate the cleanup process.
According to Councilmember Jurado's Office, the motions "seek a dedicated Mitigation Response Fund for pest and vector control, dedicated casework services, faster cleanup, legal accountability and safeguards against a routine rebuild while establishing a permanent community voice."
"I'm also calling for a faster cleanup of the warehouse site by urging Governor Newsom and the state of California to deploy additional resources to bolster the current cleanup operations," Jurado said during a press conference Tuesday.
A spokesperson for Governor Newsom released the following statement:
"The Governor understands how distressing this situation is for the Boyle Heights community. That's why he moved quickly to declare a State of Emergency to support local efforts in Boyle Heights, where the City of Los Angeles remains the lead on response and recovery. We expect the responsible party to work urgently with local and state agencies to accelerate cleanup and address community concerns."
On Tuesday, the L.A. County Board of Supervisors passed a motion to provide financial assistance to small businesses affected by the Lineage fire.
"I've spoken to some of these businesses in the area myself and heard first-hand about the thousands of dollars that they've lost," said Board Chair and First District Supervisor Hilda Solis.
According to the county, the motion would also "direct the Department of Public Health, in consultation with County Counsel, to evaluate its citation and fee structure and provide recommendations for increasing penalties for public health violations with significant impacts to public and environmental health."
But nearly seven weeks later, Boyle Heights residents like Victoria Berdin say what they want most is urgency.
"When I speak with my neighbors face to face, many of the things that they want, and the main thing that they want, is this food gone. They want this factory gone, and they don't want it to be rebuilt," Berdin said.
Mayor Karen Bass signed an emergency executive order barring city departments from processing Lineage's rebuild plans until fire investigators make their findings public.
Lineage says that as of Monday, the company has removed approximately 80 percent of the food waste.
"Every day, hundreds of workers, contractors and experts are on-site working around the clock to accelerate the cleanup, reduce odors, protect public health, and provide direct assistance to impacted residents. Our pest and odor mitigation efforts to date are detailed below," part of the statement from Lineage reads.
Lineage also says it has "expanded its pest-control efforts with support from Orkin to help reduce fly and rodent activity around the site." The Aug. 3 statement says Lineage’s community support efforts total more than $3.3 million.
Los Angeles Unified School District says it is prioritizing student health and safety in the aftermath of the Lineage fire.
In a statement released Friday, LAUSD says, "Los Angeles Unified has expanded efforts to clean and prepare campuses to welcome students back to school on Aug. 12, with an intense focus on 54 schools located within three miles of the Lineage warehouse in Boyle Heights, which burned for eight days in mid-June."