Los Angeles warehouse fire smoke chokes Southern California for fifth day

LOS ANGELES – A fire at a cold storage warehouse near downtown Los Angeles continued pumping fumes across Southern California five days after it ignited, prompting emergency declarations as air quality reached unhealthy levels.

The stubborn blaze at a Lineage Logistics facility in the Boyle Heights neighborhood in the city’s east has become one of the area’s most disruptive industrial fires in recent years.

Authorities shut down intersections around the smoldering warehouse late on June 21 to clear access for emergency crews as firefighters continued their round-the-clock battle against the fire, which erupted June 17.

Thick clouds have darkened skies stretching across central Los Angeles County, the San Gabriel Valley, east San Fernando Valley and northwest San Bernardino Valley, according to the South Coast Air Quality Management District.

An advisory extended through 12.30pm local time on June 22 warned that concentrations of fine-particle pollution had climbed to levels ranging from “unhealthy for sensitive groups” to “very unhealthy”.

California Governor Gavin Newsom has issued a state of emergency declaration response to the fire, deploying 5.5 million N95 respirator masks, commercial-grade air purifiers, bottled water and other emergency supplies for distribution.

Local officials opened relief centres and urged residents near the warehouse to remain indoors, when possible, with windows and doors shut.

The blaze has unfolded as Los Angeles hosts FIFA World Cup matches and welcomes thousands of visitors from around the world.

While not a wildfire, the smoke-choked skies have evoked memories of the devastating Palisades and Eaton fires that killed at least 30 people in January 2025 and blanketed large parts of the region in smoke.

Across social media, residents described difficulty breathing and sleeping and some described the smell as unbearable. Videos showed volunteers handing out masks on streets shrouded in gray haze and soliciting online donations for relief efforts.

Firefighters have faced an unusually difficult challenge at the 46,500 sq m facility, a giant refrigerated warehouse packed with thick insulated walls and topped with solar panels.

Concerns that ammonia used in the cooling system could be released into surrounding neighborhoods have further complicated the response.

After initially using firefighting helicopters to staunch rooftop flames, they shifted to pouring constant streams of water on the structure, filling the air with steamy clouds that drifted for miles above the nation’s second-largest metropolitan area.

Lineage said it has been pumping ammonia from the warehouse and transporting it to an offsite location.

“We can confirm that no measurable ammonia concentrations have been recorded in the community since the fire began, and we continue to be grateful to Los Angeles’ remarkable firefighters for their brave and tireless response,” the company said in a statement.

The smoke was impossible to ignore even miles away. Hazy skies loomed over Dodger Stadium on June 21 as the Dodgers hosted the Baltimore Orioles, losing 12-1.

“It’s a little dark out there, a little Gotham City,” Dodgers Manager Dave Roberts said during a pregame press conference. BLOOMBERG