Hospital visits for smoke inhalation and throat pain significantly increased in Los Angeles County following a major warehouse fire in Boyle Heights that lasted eight days, according to data obtained by The Times.
The blaze, which began on June 17, involved a massive Lineage Logistics cold storage warehouse and burned through materials including solar panels, insulation foam, and other industrial compounds. During the period of the fire, emergency departments within a 10-mile radius of the warehouse saw more than three times the number of patients reporting symptoms related to the fire or smoke inhalation compared to the two weeks prior. Data from the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health revealed a near doubling of patients reporting throat pain within a five-mile radius on June 21, reaching 1.9 times baseline levels.
The health department's findings are based on its syndromic surveillance project, which tracks trends in patient-reported symptoms and diagnoses. While the system is not exhaustive and may underestimate the true impact due to potential omissions of keyword information by clinicians, the preliminary results are cause for concern, according to experts. Notably, there was no substantial increase observed in emergency department visits for asthma, acute respiratory symptoms, or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease during the fire.
The fire, believed to have started on the building's solar array, spread to an ammonia line, leading to temporary shelter-in-place orders. Over the following week, the fire consumed dense insulation foam and other industrial materials, releasing acrid smoke that affected large portions of Los Angeles. The South Coast Air Quality Management District issued warnings regarding unhealthy levels of fine particulate matter (PM 2.5), and temporary smoke respite shelters were opened to provide cleaner air.
The precise composition of the smoke remains under investigation, but industrial fires are known to release a broader range of toxic chemicals and fine particles than typical wildfires. Experts like Will Barrett of the American Lung Association have noted that the specific makeup of the smoke poses serious risks to lung health, particularly for vulnerable populations such as children and the elderly. David Eisenman, director of the UCLA Center for Public Health and Disasters, highlighted that urban industrial fires can emit pollutants not always captured by standard PM 2.5 advisories, potentially including burning batteries or toxic refrigerants.
While the initial data did not indicate a spike in asthma-related emergency visits, health officials and experts suggest that the full health impact may not be immediately apparent. Some patients may have sought care from primary care physicians, which would not be reflected in emergency department data. Lingering effects from pollutants like hydrogen fluoride and elevated PM 2.5 levels in a densely populated urban area could manifest as delayed pulmonary issues or exacerbations of chronic diseases in the coming weeks, suggesting the public health implications of this fire are ongoing.
