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Cleanup efforts at a fire-ravaged cold storage warehouse in Boyle Heights just got messier.
In a letter sent Friday, Greg Lehmkuhl — chief executive of Lineage, which manages the facility — accused Altus Power, the solar panel subcontractor whose rooftop equipment is suspected of potentially sparking the June 17 blaze, of obstructing demolition efforts.
According to the letter, which was addressed to Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and county Supervisor Hilda Solis, Lineage was prepared and had the necessary permits to begin demolition work at the site Friday, as required under emergency executive orders and a Los Angeles County public health directive issued June 29.
“Unlike Altus and other involved parties, Lineage has been on the front lines since day one, and we are committed to doing everything in our power to execute a safe and swift remediation effort,” Lehmkuhl wrote.
An Altus spokesperson said Friday that the company’s primary concern is the well-being of the community affected by the fire, and added that the company is cooperating with local officials as the investigation continues.
Lehmkuhl wrote that crews were ready to begin removing debris when they received a notice Thursday ordering them to halt demolition. The letter did not explain the pause, but suggested it may have been intended to preserve evidence.
“The work we planned does not affect the suspected area of origin or materials potentially relevant to evidence preservation or further investigation,” Lehmkuhl wrote. “This is unacceptable. Public safety is our number one priority.”
However, the Altus Power spokesperson said because an official cause of the fire has not yet been determined, concerns about the investigation stand.
“In the last 24 hours multiple parties joined in asking Lineage to appropriately preserve and not destroy relevant evidence during its site remediations,” the Altus spokesperson told The Times. “It is unfortunate that Lineage appears to be focused on pointing fingers rather than getting this community the swift clean-up and answers it deserves.”
Lineage previously said the fire started days after Altus Power conducted performance tests on the warehouse rooftop June 17.
Lehmkuhl said there is an urgent need to prevent additional flareups, clear debris and address the persistent odor of millions of pounds of rotting food at the site.
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The steady work of hauling 85 million pounds of rotting food out of a damaged warehouse in Boyle Heights began on Sunday, officials said, and city officials have already started mitigation efforts to address concerns of pests, smells, and a steady stream of trucks in the area.
Many residents living near the warehouse have expressed concerns for their health and loved ones, with some calling for the warehouse to shut down entirely.
Councilmember Ysabel Jurado, who represents Boyle Heights, said in a written statement that “no private party should be allowed to use process, finger-pointing, or liability disputes as an excuse to slow down cleanup that the community urgently needs.”
“I am calling on Lineage, Altus, the property owner, and every involved party to cooperate immediately with the City, County, LAFD, Public Health, and regulatory agencies,” Jurado said in the statement to The Times. “If there are legitimate evidence-preservation concerns, they must be addressed through a clear, written protocol that allows investigators to do their work without delaying urgent remediation.”
Crews battled the Boyle Heights warehouse fire for about a week before they got it under control. Questions remain about how long the cleanup process will take, and what long-term repercussions there may be from the resulting air pollution.
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Jasmine “Jaz” Mendez is an editorial assistant at the Los Angeles Times. She previously was a reporting intern for the Metro Desk, covering housing in Los Angeles. Mendez graduated from Cal State Northridge with a bachelor’s degree in political science and a minor in Spanish-language journalism.
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