Downtown L.A. Pallet Yard Fire Cleanup Begins; Closures in Place, Investigation Ongoing

DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES, Nov. 13 (KNN) — Cleanup has begun after a massive blaze consumed a pallet yard/storage area and severely damaged the I-10 Freeway in Downtown Los Angeles early Saturday morning.

The I-10 Freeway is closed in the affected area, posing a challenge for commuters in downtown. Closures are in place and monitored by Los Angeles Police Department officers.

Detours are in place for the I-10 Freeway closure in both directions. The Los Angeles Department of Transportation recommends that if you are driving on the freeway through downtown, do not exit onto surface streets to bypass the affected area. Drivers on the I-10 are advised to transfer between the 110, 101, and 5 Freeways. Mass transit options are also recommended to avoid the area.

It was announced at a press conference on Sunday that a state of emergency has been declared and work has begun with state and federal partners to repair the freeway.

The fire caused extensive and significant damage to the freeway bridge deck and impacted many columns.

Mayor Bass spoke of the urgency to repair the bridge and to keep the public informed of the progress. Updates can be found at emergency.lacity.gov/updates.

Gov. Newsom also spoke at the press conference and said he was “intimately familiar” with the industrial site where the fire erupted. There was a large scale encampment cleanup at the site in August of last year that Newsom himself personally participated in.

Newsom added that thousands of sites across California in the last year and a half, have been prioritized with Caltrans to be cleaned up with many more to be addressed.

Newsom said they have invested three quarters of a billion dollars in partnership with the legislative leaders on encampment cleanup grants working with the cities and counties and taking direct responsibility with Caltrans, and they have been hitting and exceeding their numeric goals. “We have a lot more work to do,” added Newsom.

The city is in litigation with the lessee of the burned site, according to Newsom. Inspectors have been out to the site on a consistent basis with citations. Along with pallets stored on the site, were vehicles and oranges, and other agricultural products.

“Their lease is expired, they are in arrears, we believe they’ve been subleasing the space, “said Newsom. There is a court date early in the new calendar year.

Apparently, space leased under freeways for storage is common throughout the country, according to statements from the press conference.

The investigation into the cause of the fire is ingoing. There were no reported injuries.

Gabriel Pabon, Video Journalist / KNN