Miles away from a series of Los Angeles County fires that killed five people and destroyed more than 1,000 structures, residents on the Eastside continued to face challenges.
Air quality, degraded by wildfire smoke, hit unhealthy and hazardous levels in neighborhoods like Boyle Heights and El Sereno, and prompted L.A. Unified School District to suspend classes at select schools in the central and eastern parts of the district on Wednesday and all schools on Thursday.
Thousands of households suffered power outages – some for more than a day – as dangerously high wind gusts knocked out electricity and utilities imposed precautionary shut-offs.
More than 135,000 L.A. Department of Water and Power customers were without power as of 9 p.m. Wednesday. The utility warned customers that it could take up to 48 hours before crews are able to respond and alleviate the issues.
Southern California Edison, the power company that provides electricity to East Los Angeles, reported nearly 40,000 people in L.A. County still without power as of 1 a.m. Thursday.
For Alma Ramirez, Wednesday marked the second day without power in her East L.A. home. The 41-year-old mother of two said she and her family were quick to set up candles and lanterns from old camping trips when her power went out Tuesday night following a fierce windstorm. Without electricity to power an air purifier, Ramirez feared the smoke in the air creeping inside her home would negatively impact her son with asthma.
“His school has purifiers around the campus and they’re keeping all the students inside,” Ramirez said. “For him, it’s safer to be in school indoors, where we know that air quality is a little better than our home.”
Ramirez raced to transfer a fridge full of perishable food to her sister-in-law’s house in Boyle Heights to keep it from spoiling.
She expressed gratitude for her network of support and considered this region-wide disaster a wake-up call for her family and local service providers to be better prepared in the future.
“We are very grateful that we have a really strong community. We have friends who live further east of the Los Angeles area and they have offered their homes too. I think that’s actually something that is making me feel more at ease, knowing that we have community tías and tíos willing to just be there for us if we need that support,” Ramirez said.
In Boyle Heights, Leo Guerrero used a leaf blower to remove leaves, branches, dirt and ash that blanketed the sidewalk outside his store on Cesar Chavez Avenue. He said he didn’t lose power at his home or business but was concerned that if a fire were to break out near him, it would be hard to control.
“We can’t stop nature,” Guerrero said. “The possibility is there, but we haven’t had any rain this season, so it’s possible.”
The 63-year-old said he recently saw the city trim tree branches along Cesar Chavez and speculated that if those hadn’t been managed, fallen branches could’ve downed more power lines and broken windows.
Across the Eastside, community members walked the streets wearing masks for protection from smoke, ash and poor air quality levels.
Councilmember Ysabel Jurado went live on Instagram Wednesday morning to share information on resources available to community members affected by the smoke or fires.
“This morning when I woke up I could see the fire from the Eaton Fire from my backyard,” Jurado said in the video. “We’re here with you and we’re trying really hard to provide folks resources. Our district is big and we’re going to be opening up our district offices in order to fully support.”
L.A. County Supervisor Hilda Solis said in a statement Wednesday evening that the board had “declared a State of Emergency in order to mobilize aid and support for residents and families affected by these fires.”
Several businesses, including Picaresca in Boyle Heights, announced on social media they were collecting donations to assist wilfire victims and first-responders.
Outside Sheridan Elementary School Wednesday morning, Solo Ceballos joined a line of frustrated and confused parents who learned of sudden school closures by L.A. Unified. The notification that his daughter’s school had closed came as his shift as a security guard was ending, and while he was thankful the timing worked for him, he questioned the last-minute move by LAUSD.
“Why did I send my child to school today anyways,” he asked. Ceballos, still wearing his security guard jacket, said his block on Soto Street had a few power outages the night before and while looking for candles, felt that his family’s lack of readiness was a sobering moment in an uncertain time.
“We didn’t prepare for it and we weren’t ready. But that [experience] pretty much gets us ready, just in case,” Ceballos said, hopeful that his family can practice better resiliency in the future.
Thank you for info on area of LA where so many people of color live. There is a dearth of reporting on East LA from major media outlets.