BOYLE HEIGHTS—On July 13, new reports on the massive warehouse fire that took place in Boyle Heights indicate that an estimated 102 truckloads of garbage have been removed from the warehouse fire. The pungent odor, flies, maggots, and rats remain as workers attempt to remove close 85 million pounds of what LAFD authorities referred to as frozen animal by-products.
On June 17, a fire broke out at Lineage’s Los Palos Port Centric Facility, a 491,000 square foot warehouse located at 1400 S. Los Palos St. The warehouse kept high volume inventory and cold storage.
Initially, the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health (LACDPH) issued an air quality warning for the very young, the elderly, and those with underlying breathing issues.
Three weeks later, the public is still being affected. Public health workers, and nurses at urgent care centers indicated that residents are coming int with breathing difficulties, eye irritation, shortness of breath, chest pains.
Those working in debris removal have indicated they now have continuous headaches. The stench of the rotting meat by-products has attracted flies and rats. LACDPH provided the following information on fly infestations on their website.
“The phorid fly is reportedly the culprit that is attracted to rotting meat. The reproductive potential of these flies is tremendous, and very large numbers may appear in a short time. The female can deposit about 40 eggs in a 12-hour period and lay approximately 500 eggs during her lifetime.”
The complete article on the flies, their maggots (fly offspring) may be found here.
http://www.publichealth.lacounty.gov/eh/docs/safety/managing-phorid-fly-infestations.pdf
The Boyle Heights Fire Relief Fund is offering emergency grants for small businesses and vendors who operate in the vicinity of the Lineage fire. Applications must be received by today, July 13th, to be considered for compensation.
