Warehouse Company Reveals Likely Origin Of Boyle Heights Fire

LOS ANGELES, CA — The operator of the Boyle Heights cold-storage warehouse that has burned for nearly a week said Monday that it believes the fire began on the building’s roof while crews were servicing the rooftop solar array.

"We want our neighbors to know that Lineage does not own the building or its rooftop solar array. We are the tenant-operator of the warehouse building and lease the roof to a third-party solar company, which is responsible for operating and maintaining the array."

We believe the fire originated on the roof on Wednesday while the company's subcontractors were servicing the solar array," Lineage said in a statement.

However, the company noted "the cause of the fire has not been determined."

Lineage did not identify the solar company in its statement.

The fire began June 17 at the cold-storage warehouse and continued producing smoke into Monday, prompting air regulators to extend a particle pollution advisory through Tuesday afternoon.

• Read more: Warehouse Fire Smoke Warning Extended: How To Track Air Quality In Your Neighborhood

Air quality in Boyle Heights reached the “Very Unhealthy” category Sunday, while smoke impacts were expected to shift by neighborhood depending on fire activity and wind conditions, regulators said.

The company’s statement offers one of the clearest explanations yet of what Lineage believes may have sparked the fire, which fire officials said spread rapidly across solar panels on the roof before becoming difficult for firefighters to fully extinguish.

Lineage also announced that it has made a financial contribution meant to assist those impacted by the fire.

The company said it is working with local officials to provide air purifiers, food and other resources to residents.

Lineage also said it has helped support firefighting efforts by sourcing high-powered water cannons from Texas, funding helicopters for continued water drops and working with other industrial companies to secure additional equipment intended to speed up fire suppression.

Firefighters have worked for days to reach deep-seated fire inside the warehouse, at times tearing down walls to access areas within the building. Drones and a firefighting robot have also been used to map heat and reach areas firefighters could not safely access, officials said.

An ammonia leak developed inside the building after the fire broke out, prompting concern in the surrounding community. Lineage said that it proactively pumped out the ammonia and transported it offsite.

“We can confirm that no measurable ammonia concentrations have been recorded in the community since the fire began,” the company said.

Fire officials said Monday that air quality concerns remained widespread, but the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and South Coast AQMD had not detected anything beyond normal combustible material typical after a fire.

No shelter-in-place or evacuation orders were in effect Monday.

Residents in affected areas were advised to stay indoors with windows and doors closed, avoid strenuous outdoor activity and use air conditioning or air purifiers if available.

Emergency shelter and smoke relief locations have been opened at Pecan Recreation Center, 145 S. Pecan St.; City Terrace Park, 1126 N. Hazard Ave.; and the Weingart East Los Angeles YMCA, 2900 Whittier Blvd., which also opened as a mask distribution site.

Residents in need of masks, air purifiers or information about shelter and smoke relief locations can find more info here.