A massive fire at a cold-storage warehouse in Los Angeles’s Boyle Heights neighborhood has been burning since Wednesday, June 17 and continued into its sixth day on Monday, June 22. The fire, which started on the rooftop of the 500,000-square-foot building, sent large plumes of smoke into the air, affecting air quality across wide parts of Los Angeles County.
As of today, the air quality index (AQI) in Los Angeles stands at 53, which falls under the “Moderate” category, according to IQ Air.
. A particle pollution advisory remains in effect for widespread parts of Southern California due to smoke from the fire. The advisory urges residents to keep windows, doors and vents closed and to limit time outdoors. It was set to stay in effect until midday Monday but could be extended, South Coast Air Quality Management District said.
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Smoke advisory expands as poor air quality spreads across Southern California
A particle pollution advisory due to the fire remains in effect through Monday afternoon, according to the South Coast Air Quality Management District (AQMD). The advisory could impact large parts of Los Angeles and areas further east, including Inland Empire cities like Ontario and Riverside.
South Coast AQMD is urging people to limit their exposure by staying indoors with windows and doors closed. “Regulatory monitors and sensors show that PM2.5 levels reached Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups to Very Unhealthy Air Quality Index (AQI) categories since Saturday night in the areas of central Los Angeles County, San Gabriel Valley, East San Fernando Valley and Northwest San Bernardino Valley,” South Coast AQMD said, per USA Today.
PM2.5 is among the particles that “pose the greatest problems” because it can “generally pass through the nose and throat and enter the lungs,” causing serious health effects for people who are more at risk, such as older adults and children, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Unhealthy for sensitive groups, the third category in the AQI, means “members of sensitive groups may experience health effects” due to the air quality. The very unhealthy category is one in which everyone faces a risk of health effects.
People can check the air quality index of their area at airnow.gov.
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Emergency declared, Schools relocated due to smoke
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass declared an emergency on Saturday, June 20, to make sure the city gets the resources needed to fight the fire. “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,” Bass said.
California Governor Gavin Newsom also declared a state of emergency over the weekend, directing state agencies to provide “additional assistance and resources.” Newsom said the state has made more than 5 million N95 respirator masks available for distribution, along with air purifiers, bottled water and other supplies.
Due to air quality concerns, the Los Angeles Unified School District relocated some summer school programs on Monday. Dena Elementary and Dacotah Early Education Center were moved to Sunrise Elementary, Eastman Early Education Center was relocated to Humphreys Elementary, and Stevenson Middle School was relocated to Belvedere Middle School, according to NBC.
All activities at these sites will be held indoors, the LAUSD said.
“It’s been affecting a lot of families, especially because of Father’s Day, a lot of people weren’t able to celebrate the way they wanted to because of the fire,” said Asenett Barrera, the parent of an LAUSD student.
All shelter-in-place orders issued last week have now expired and firefighters confined the fire to one side of the warehouse over the weekend, though the cause remains unknown.
