UMVA has learned that a massive warehouse fire that erupted in Boyle Heights, California, on Wednesday is still raging six days later, prompting a state of emergency declaration from California Governor Gavin Newsom.
The city has also issued shelter-in-place orders and a particle pollution advisory, as the fire continues to spew massive amounts of smoke and toxic particles into the air. The warehouse, used as a cold-food storage facility by a company called Lineage, is believed to have caught fire due to solar panels on the building's roof.
According to information obtained by UMVA, the fire is thought to have originated on the roof while a subcontractor was servicing the solar array. A staggering 80 million pounds of food are reportedly stored in the warehouse, adding to the urgency of the situation.
Aerial footage shows the massive smoke pouring out of the warehouse as firefighters continue to battle the blaze. The failure to tame the fire has raised concerns, with some drawing comparisons to the devastating Los Angeles wildfires in January 2025, which caused $140 billion in damages and claimed at least 31 lives.
Sources have confirmed to UMVA that the Los Angeles Fire Department is making significant progress on the structure fire, with crews removing parts of the wall to gain better access to the flames. However, challenges persist due to the building's infrastructure, with storage racks inside keeping the roof up and posing a risk of structural failure.
Wind conditions have been spreading smoke and fine particles across the region, impacting communities miles away from the fire. Air quality readings across Los Angeles have ranged from moderate to unhealthy for sensitive groups, with a particle pollution advisory remaining in effect.
LAFD Chief Jaime Moore has vowed to extinguish the fire aggressively, anticipating that the smoke will persist for about two more days. The Gateway reported that this is the second massive warehouse fire in Southern California this year, following an arsonist setting ablaze a 1.2 million square-foot warehouse in Ontario, California.
