Boyle Heights Structure Fire Enters Sixth Day, Prompting School Relocations and Air Quality Alerts
A large commercial fire in Boyle Heights has entered its sixth day, leading to temporary school relocations and air quality warnings across several Los Angeles regions.
A structure fire at a 500,000-square-foot commercial building on the 1400 block of Los Palos Street in Boyle Heights has entered its sixth day, prompting the Los Angeles Unified School District to move activities from several east-side schools to alternate locations. Dena Elementary and Dacotah Early Education Center classes are being held at Sunrise Elementary on East 7th Street, while Eastman Early Education Center will use Humphreys Elementary and Stevenson Middle School will shift to Belvedere Middle School, the district announced on Sunday evening.
Los Angeles Fire Department officials said crews have removed portions of the building’s exterior walls to improve access, but the collapsed roof supports create “complex and unstable conditions that require a cautious and methodical approach.” They added that smoke conditions have improved markedly and are expected to keep improving as the fire is extinguished, though “intermittent increases in smoke may occur as crews open walls and other concealed spaces to locate and extinguish hidden fire.”
Fire Chief Jaime Moore indicated that if the current pace continues, the blaze could be fully contained by the end of the week. Air-quality monitors have recorded levels ranging from “unhealthy for sensitive groups” to “very unhealthy” since Saturday night across Los Angeles County, the San Gabriel Valley and the northwest San Bernardino Valley. East Los Angeles, Boyle Heights and the San Gabriel Valley are expected to continue experiencing smoke impacts on Monday.
Mayor Karen Bass and Governor Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency on Saturday in response to the deteriorating air quality. The tenant-operator of the building, Lineage Logistics, said a fire likely started while third-party contractors were testing a solar array on the roof. Because of the building’s size and the location of the flames, firefighters have employed water-dropping helicopters and other heavy equipment in their efforts.