Rotting food stench persists in Boyle Heights after warehouse fire

Mayor sets Aug. 13 cleanup deadline as Lineage draws criticism

Nearly two months after a fire destroyed a cold-storage warehouse in Los Angeles’ Boyle Heights neighborhood, residents say a foul odor from rotting food continues to hang over the area, which is mostly a warehouse district surrounded by homes. The fire on 17 June consumed the facility, leaving behind an estimated 85 million lb (39 million kg) of beef, pork, poultry and seafood that has since decayed.

Residents described the stench as overwhelming. “It smells really bad, like really bad… to the point that you want to throw up,” said Mesha, a 37-year-old security guard stationed outside a marijuana dispensary, who likened the smell to that of a dead body.

The odor has driven customers away from local businesses. Alexis Sicairos, 30, who runs the Brew Sting coffee stand at a street corner that has grown largely empty, said he shut the business for two weeks after the fire and that demand has not recovered since it reopened. Of the warehouse workers who previously lined up to buy coffee, Sicairos said: “Due to the fire, obviously most of them aren’t here. So we lost those customers, but we also lost customers that don’t want to be around the smell, the smoke, the flies. It’s understandable. But we have to keep paying our bills, so we’re still here.”

Sicairos said flies have swarmed the area since the stored food began rotting, landing on his tables and his body as he packs up for the day. Residents have also reported seeing large rats and say the traps placed along sidewalks are not big enough to hold them.

A city-commissioned inspection report found that waste and high temperatures at the warehouse could speed up the breeding of flies capable of infecting wounds in both people and animals, a local NBC affiliate reported. The report, from a pest control company, said the conditions could put people and animals with open wounds at risk of contracting disease.

Lineage, which operated the warehouse, said that as of Monday about 80% of the food waste had been removed, up from 60% on 31 July. “Our goal is to complete bulk food waste removal from the site next week,” a company spokesperson told the BBC on Wednesday. Lineage said it expects to spend $80m-$100m (£59m-£74m) on the cleanup.

City officials said this week that the company’s response had “fallen short” and that they have issued public health and safety violation notices. Late last month, the county’s public health department fined Lineage for “unsanitary and nuisance” conditions with $500-a-day citations.

Mayor Karen Bass, who is up for re-election this year, has given Lineage a 13 August deadline to complete the cleanup. In a statement to the BBC, Bass said: “I understand why residents are frustrated. They deserve transparency, clear communication, and meaningful support. Since day one, I have been in Boyle Heights listening to residents, meeting with families, and making sure their voices guide our response.”

Bass said she directed city departments to work with local, state, federal, nonprofit and community partners to deliver immediate support and solutions, and she has issued executive orders to mobilize resources and speed up the cleaning process. The city said it and other local partners have brought mobile health clinics to the neighborhood and delivered thousands of air purifiers.

In a letter to Lineage shareholders on Tuesday, Bass criticized the company’s efforts. “Residents, public agencies and elected officials have repeatedly sought timely information regarding the cleanup, remediation, environmental monitoring and recovery,” she wrote. “Too often, those requests have been met with delayed communication, limited transparency, and insufficient public engagement.” The mayor also directed city departments to halt plans to rebuild the warehouse “until the health and safety of the community are protected.”

Lineage said “cleanup crews are working around the clock to remove food waste, clear debris and dismantle damaged sections of the structure,” describing the effort as “highly complex” and saying that reducing odors is a “key priority.” Outside the warehouse, dozens of workers in hard hats and neon vests, some wearing face coverings, were on-site tackling the cleanup, along with officials from the local air quality authority and sheriff’s office.