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BOYLE HEIGHTS, LOS ANGELES () — There is an apparent roadblock in the cleanup effort after a fire tore through a cold storage warehouse in Boyle Heights.
Lineage, the company that operates out of the building, says the group that owns the solar panels on the roof, Altus Power, demanded they stop demolition of the site. However, the city says it is not asking Lineage to demolish any portion of the building related to the fire investigation, and instead asks that the food waste be removed as quickly as possible.
The president and CEO of the company, Greg Lehmkuhl, sent a letter to Mayor Karen Bass and County Supervisor Hilda Solis, raising concerns about the stoppage and asking local officials to intervene and allow demolition to proceed.
It comes after Bass issued two executive orders to help speed up the cleanup and hold those responsible for the fire accountable.
The stench of 85 million pounds of rotting food inside a burned down Boyle Heights warehouse can be smelled from miles away.
Lineage says the work it planned to begin on Friday morning would not affect the fire investigation and is crucial to ensure there are no more flare-ups. Lineage also said the Los Angeles Fire Department confirmed that it does not require the company to halt the work.
“Lineage was prepared and permitted to begin demolition work on the Los Palos site this morning, consistent with your Emergency Executive Orders and County Public Health Directive of June 29,” Lehmkuhl wrote. “Our work is staged and debris is pre-treated and ready to move. LAFD’s investigators have confirmed they do not require us to halt this work. Demolition is required to address flare-ups and extinguish the fire once and for all.”
SEE ALSO: ER visits spiked around Boyle Heights during warehouse fire, public health data shows
While some residents say the smell of rotting food is improving, we are learning that ER visits nearby tripled during the warehouse fire.
Containers are staged at the warehouse site, and debris is pre-treated and pre-loaded, ready to move to landfills when they open on Monday morning, according to Lineage. The company said it is committed to working through the holiday weekend.
“Altus has offered no comparable plan and has not demonstrated any of the same sense of urgency. On behalf of everyone in the impacted communities, we ask you to act immediately. Hold Altus and any other party seeking to delay cleanup and fire prevention at the site to the same standard of accountability you have applied to Lineage. Direct them to stand down and allow remediation to proceed,” Lehmkuhl wrote. “The Boyle Heights community cannot afford to have its community held hostage by a party whose equipment is suspected of starting this fire.”
Lineage believes the fire started while Altus Power contractors were conducting testing on a rooftop solar array. Altus Power previously disputed that conclusion.
Bass sent a response to Lineage’s letter, noting that the city has not asked the company to demolish any portion of the building that could be relevant to the fire investigation, and is instead asking Lineage to take measures to eliminate fire flare-ups and remove food waste as quickly as possible.
“No court order is preventing you from doing this, and it is critical that you stay laser focused on clearing out your warehouse of your stored food waste and debris since it is that food decomposition that is causing the greatest ongoing harm to our adjacent communities,” Bass wrote in her response.
Eyewitness News reached out to Altus Power regarding the cleanup stoppage and is waiting to hear back.
The following is the full response from Bass:
“I’m in receipt of your letter raising concerns about third parties seeking to delay you from cleaning up the property.The City has not asked and is not asking you to demolish any portion of the building that could be relevant to determining the source of the fire or other issues in any litigation among you and anyone else with an interest in the building or in any lawsuit.The City is simply urging you to continue to take all measures to eliminate any fire flare-ups and remove the food waste as quickly as possible.No court order is preventing you from doing this, and it is critical that you stay laser focused on clearing out your warehouse of your stored food waste and debris since it is that food decomposition that is causing the greatest ongoing harm to our adjacent communities.”
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