Crews extinguished the flames on the roof of a nearly 500,000-square-foot Boyle Heights cold-storage facility operated by Lineage, Los Angeles Fire Department officials said Wednesday, shifting the fight to smoldering material inside while keeping firefighters
The roof of the Boyle Heights warehouse finally went quiet overnight, and by Wednesday morning firefighters were working a different kind of fire—one that couldn’t be approached with a door and a hose.
Los Angeles Fire Department officials said the flames on the roof had been extinguished after crews managed to put out the roof fire overnight at a nearly 500. 000-square-foot cold storage facility operated by Lineage. Water-dropping helicopters that had been used to knock down roof flames were no longer needed, Capt. Jacob Raabe said Wednesday morning outside the facility.
“Those air tactics are no longer needed because all the fire has been put out on the roof,” Raabe said.
The next goal on Wednesday was to extinguish what was left burning inside the building. Raabe said firefighters would have to do that without going inside.
“We still cannot send firefighters into this building and to be quite honest. we’re probably never going to send anyone into this building because there’s no life hazard right now. ” he said. “Were going to put out this fire from the exterior and reevaluate as conditions change. But this tactic is working and it’s putting out the fire.”.
From the outside. crews planned to blast a constant stream of water into the warehouse. Raabe said—an effort aimed at drowning out the flames below. He pointed to the danger of what was burning inside: a roof resting on 600-foot-long. 50-foot-tall racks that hold 85 million pounds of food that are burning and spoiling.
Raabe said the shift in tactics would rely on technology and careful targeting. Crews would fly drones into the building to look for hot spots and then redirect their water cannons accordingly.
The department also described steps meant to make the interior more accessible. Raabe said crews “peeled” back the building’s walls to expose more of the interior and give better access for firefighters.
He said the response included a public-private partnership with a company in Texas that provided water cannons typically used on burning oil rigs. Raabe tied those methods to the speed of progress so far. saying that the approach helped bring a fire that he said can take over 60 days to extinguish in other jurisdictions to the point it was on day eight.
“This is how we have taken a fire that in other jurisdictions has taken over 60 days to put out, we’re on day eight now and we’re close to final extinguishment,” Raabe said.
The Boyle Heights incident is not Lineage’s first cold-storage fire. Raabe referenced a 2024 fire at a Lineage cold-storage warehouse in Finley, Wash., that took eight weeks to extinguish.
In that case. some residents filed a lawsuit alleging Lineage has a history of hazardous chemical releases and regulatory violations that should have compelled stronger safety protocols at the site. Lineage said health and safety is its top priority and that it vigorously disputes the lawsuit’s characterization of its safety record.
Outside the fire lines, air quality officials said the smoke continued to affect residents. The South Coast Air Quality Management District extended a particle pollution advisory through 12:30 p.m. Wednesday, saying smoke from the fire continued to affect air quality.
The agency said impacts vary greatly across space and time. depending on fire activity. and warned that while regulator monitors and sensors showed improved pollution levels since noon Monday—along with the air quality index in the areas immediately surrounding the fire decreasing from very unhealthy to moderate as of 11 a.m. Tuesday—air quality monitors don’t account for large ash particles and debris. People who saw or smelled smoke or ash were told to take precautions to protect their health.
Boyle Heights Lineage Los Angeles Fire Department warehouse fire cold storage facility air quality South Coast Air Quality Management District particle pollution advisory drones Capt. Jacob Raabe
So they got the roof out but it’s still burning inside? Wild.
Isn’t cold storage supposed to help? Like wouldn’t it stay cold and not spread? Sounds like they just made it worse by dumping water on top.
“Probably never going to send anyone into this building”?? So are workers just trapped or what. Also 85 million pounds of food burning… I mean that’s basically the whole neighborhood groceries gone, right?
They said the helicopter water helped then stopped when the roof was out, but they’re blasting from the outside now. So it’s like a slow-motion fire that you can’t even go in on. LA Fire be doing all kinds of stuff I guess, but how is anything “nearly out” if it’s still smoldering??