Crews battle massive Boyle Heights warehouse fire and ammonia leak; shelter-in-place order issued 12%
By Clara Harter64%
6/17/2026, 10:58:49 PM
BS Summary: This article contains 9 faulty reasoning types, including Appeal to Emotion, Negativity Bias, and Availability Heuristic, with Indoctrination as the most egregious example at 14.3% saturation with 88 hits. Analysis detected 365 faulty-reasoning hits from 614 analyzed words, generating a BS Score of 28.7% and a BS Rank of 12% (19,340 of 21,886 articles). This article is better (less manipulative) than 88.40% of the article peer group.
Shelter-in-place orders were issued in Boyle Heights on Wednesday afternoon as firefighters worked to combat a massive blaze involving an ammonia gas leak inside a cold storage facility.
Los Angeles Fire Department ground crews, hazardous materials teams and three water-dropping helicopters were deployed to the conflagration at 1400 S.
Los Palos St.
The fire burned through solar panels on the roof of the facility and sent a thick black plume of smoke into the air that could be seen for miles.
A shelter-in-place order was issued in areas east of the blaze due to the heavy smoke being generated, according to the LAFD.
Residents in the affected area — extending roughly from south of the 101 Freeway to Washington Boulevard, and east of Soto Street to Indiana Street — were warned of “hazardous materials nearby.”
“Get inside IMMEDIATELY and close all windows and doors,” fire officials said in an alert.
“Turn off air conditioning/heating.
Bring all people and pets to an inside room and close all vents until you receive more instructions.”
A smoke advisory was issued for a broad swath of East Los Angeles, with members of the public urged to limit outdoor exercise and those with health issues to go indoors.
Crews responded to the incident 2:35 p.m. when they took an offensive position battling the fire burning solar panels atop a 1,000-by-500-foot commercial building, according to the LAFD.
Although crews made initial progress dousing the roof with water, an ammonia gas leak was then discovered inside the building, and several small explosions reinvigorated the flames and smoke.
Within the hour, all firefighters were called off the roof and out of the building due to the danger posed by the intense flames and the ammonia leak.
The building is owned by Lineage Logistics and provides cold storage and blast freezing inside 491,000 square feet of warehouse space, according to its website.
Ammonia is commonly used as a refrigerant in large-scale commercial and industrial settings.
The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
As the fire consumed more of the roof, LAFD hose lines were unable to reach all areas of the blaze, and three firefighting helicopters were called in and used to dump thousands of gallons from above.
These drops helped reduce the amount of smoke being generated by the blaze.
Although helicopters and other firefighting aircraft are a common tactic used to combat wildfires, they are rarely deployed to structure fires.
LAFD Chief Jaime Moore said that, in his 31 years with the department, this is only the second incident he can remember where aerial water drops were used to fight a building fire.
The warehouse facility at 1400 S.
Los Palos St also caught on fire in August 2024, although that incident was significantly less dramatic.
Crews quickly established hose lines on the roof and contained the blaze to a portion of the solar panels atop the structure, achieving knockdown in 48 minutes with no injuries reported, according to LAFD at the time.
L.A.
City Councilmember Ysabel Jurado, who represents Boyle Heights, said her office was closely monitoring the fire and is grateful to the emergency crews working to control the blaze.
“We know how frightening it is to see heavy smoke in your neighborhood, especially for families, workers, small businesses, and commuters who are trying to understand what is happening and how to stay safe,” she said in a statement.
“Right now, the most important thing is to follow the shelter-in-place order that has been issued because of the smoke.”
Times staff writer Andrew Campa and City News Service contributed to this report.
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