With a fire burning at a Boyle Heights cold storage warehouse for a seventh straight day, scrutiny is growing over the operator of the massive facility and what sparked the blaze that has spewed bad air across the region.
State regulators have launched an investigation into the incident and some local officials have called it a wake-up call for communities like Boyle Heights, where homes are sandwiched close to industry and manufacturing districts.
Lineage, previously known as Lineage Logistics, the company operating the facility, is billed as the world’s largest owner of cold storage facilities and raised $4.44 billion in its U.S. initial public offering in 2024, the largest stock market debut of the year. It has also been cited for regulatory violations and hazardous chemical releases at some of its facilities, according to enforcement records and a civil lawsuit, though the company said it has a strong safety record.
Lineage said in a statement that the cold food storage industry is heavily regulated and various agencies conducted more than 200 routine regulatory inspections of its North America operations in 2024 and 2025 alone. Its total incident rate — a metric that measures the frequency of workplace injuries and illnesses — outperforms the industry average by 14%, the company said.
“The health and safety of our employees and the communities we serve is our top priority,” it said.
The company said it believes the fire was started when a subcontractor employed by the owner of the rooftop solar array, Altus Power, was performing tests on June 17. Fire officials have also said they suspect the fire started on the roof.
Altus Power said in a statement that the cause of the fire has yet to be determined but that it is cooperating fully with authorities and has reached out to local leaders to offer help. The contractor, Pearce Services, confirmed that four of its employees were on-site the day the fire ignited and said none were injured. The company is also cooperating with relevant agencies, it said in a statement.
The California Division of Occupational Safety and Health has opened inspections with both Lineage and Pearce related to the fire, the agency confirmed.
Los Angeles City Controller Kenneth Mejia said his officeis also tracking the related city costs for dealing with the fire, adding on X: “we need all companies involved to take accountability and help impacted residents immediately.”
This is not the first time Lineage has had a massive fire at one of its facilities.
Another blaze that ignited in a warehouse about two years ago and 1,000 miles away provides insight into the severity of the situation.
That fire broke out at a 525,000-square-foot cold storage facility in Finley, Wash., in April of 2024 and took eight weeks to extinguish.
Flames were stoked by combustible items that included forklifts containing lithium-ion batteries and greasy frozen french fries, said Will Sykes, a Nevada-based attorney who is representing more than a dozen residents in a lawsuit stemming from the fire.
Inside the warehouse were tall racking systems holding pallets stacked almost to the ceiling, which helped flames spread rapidly and made it difficult for water from the sprinkler system to reach the lower areas of the building, Sykes said.
A lawsuit filed by plaintiffs claims the building’s sealed construction and ammonia-based refrigeration system trapped heat and smoke and dehumidified the air, increasing combustibility. Meanwhile, the fire suppression system was inadequate and ran out of water as firefighters fought the blaze, it alleges.
More than two years later, residents of the surrounding community have reported ongoing problems with their lungs, sinuses and respiratory systems and some have passed away, while livestock and pets have also become ill and died, Sykes said. “At the end of the day, ultimately we want accountability for those who are responsible for this horrific fire,” he said.
The lawsuit alleges Lineage has a history of incidents that should have compelled the company to adopt stronger safety protocols. In 2022, an ammonia release at a warehouse in Forest Grove, Ore., required a hazmat response, and in 2020, a contractor was killed after an ammonia release inside a warehouse in Statesville, N.C., it states.
The Environmental Protection Agency in 2023 fined Lineage more than $170,000 for alleged violations of the Clean Air Act at its Altoona, Iowa, facility, finding that it failed to comply with regulations intended to protect the surrounding community from accidental releases of anhydrous ammonia. And the Occupational Safety and Health Administration fined Lineage $58,000 after a report of ammonia release at a facility in McAllen, Texas, in 2015 and cited the company for nine serious violations, it states.
A spokesperson for Lineage said in a statement that the company can’t comment on the specifics of ongoing litigation but vigorously disputes the lawsuit’s characterization of its safety record.
The fire burned for so long that local officials installed air monitors in some areas near the plant to get regular readings of air quality,according to the Apple Valley News.
Lineage has received citations in connection with the Boyle Heights facility that is now burning. In 2020, Cal/OSHA issued citations for 12 violations, four of them serious, including allegations that the company failed to create or maintain an effective emergency action plan or to provide adequate training to employees expected to participate in emergency response. The agency also alleged the company failed to carry out periodic inspections to identify unsafe conditions and work practices, or to provide proper training and personal protective equipment to some of its employees and contractors.
All but three of the violations were eventually deleted after the company contested them and an administrative judge made a ruling on the matter, agency records state.
Last year, the EPA also entered into a settlement agreement with Lineage in connection with alleged Clean Air Act violations at its facilities in Vernon after an inspection found ammonia piping with ice accumulation and damaged insulation and alleged the company had failed to correct a critical safety system deficiency identified during a 2021 audit, according to the agreement, in which the company agreed to pay a civil penalty of $3,420.
Officials hope to have the Boyle Heights fire out within the next day or two. Firefighters continued their campaign to pull apart the structure and get at the flames hidden inside as additional crews arrived from across the region to assist with the fire battle. Smoke appears to have dissipated somewhat.
L.A. County Health Officer Muntu Davis said Monday air quality had varied over the course of the incident.
“Right now in some areas that were unhealthy yesterday, they’re good, or they’re moderate, and in other areas they’re still very unhealthy,” he said.
But the days of smoke has sparked outrage and demands for answers and accountability.
“This fire has endangered the Boyle Heights community, has endangered many throughout Los Angeles County and beyond,” said Marissa Roy, a deputy attorney general with the California Department of Justice who is running for Los Angeles city attorney. “If negligence contributed to this, then we need to make sure that we are holding those companies accountable.”
Los Angeles City Councilmember Ysabel Jurado, who represents Boyle Heights, said Monday: “Families are still dealing with the smoke, odor, ash, closed parks and community spaces, disrupted routines and serious concerns about what they are breathing. And people are tired, they are anxious, and they deserve answers.”
Times staff writer Clara Harter contributed to this report.
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