FEMA defends the strategy for cleaning forest fires in the middle of floor test reactions

Faced with the rise in the back of the survivors of forest fires and elected officials from California, federal disaster agencies defend their decision to give up soil tests after cleaning teams remove the debris from the properties that burned in fires From the County of Los Angeles.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency and the body of American army engineers said that federal cleaning workers would eliminate ash and toxic rubble from forest fires, as well as a 6 -inch layer of terrestrial earth properties. But, this week, federal officials told Times that they would not order soil tests to confirm that the properties are not yet contaminated after withdrawal.

Follow -up soil tests – carried out after each major forest fire in California since 2007 – aims to guarantee that properties are corrected according to state standards and still do not contain dangerous levels of toxic substances.

But now, the FEMA, the agency responsible for the allocation of financing and the discovery of cleaning procedures following forest fires, insists that the scratch of 6 inches of topsoil of each property is sufficient To protect public health.

Brandi Richard Thompson, spokesperson for region 9 of FEMA, which oversees the response to disasters in the southwest of the Pacific islands and islands, said that the agency cleaning strategy is “based on Best scientific practices and longtime FEMA policies “. She said that any deeper contamination of 3 to 6 inches “is unlikely to be attributable to the fire itself and does not constitute an immediate threat to public health and security.”

“While FEMA undertakes to support communities in their recovery, decisions concerning additional soil tests and over -e -courage are left to local and state authorities,” Richard Thompson said in a press release. “These measures are not required under public health or reconstruction regulations, and FEMA is unable to finance activities that are not directly linked to fire -related contamination. However, local governments are free to carry out additional tests if they wish. »»

Barely two years ago, however, FEMA paid the floor tests in the aftermath of the Maui 2023 forest fires. Fema officials say they had ordered tests in Hawaii because they had less data on Historical forest fires than for California. In the future, they say, they will not order soil tests after forest fires and the rest of the region 9.

In addition, FEMA’s new position ignores that during the answers spent on forest fires, soil tests revealed that a large number of properties always contained dangerous levels of toxic chemicals, even after 6 inches of earth vegetable.

Federal cleaning policies have aroused a generalized indicator of civil servants and fire survivors that fear that the approach may leave dangerous levels of toxic substances. In response to the reports of the Times, Governor Gavin Newsom summoned an emergency firm meeting Thursday morning to discuss the lack of soil sampling. His office, however, did not give details on the governor’s position towards federal cleaning.

“The governor closely monitored the developments on the reconstruction and recovery of Los Angeles fires,” said Daniel Villaseñor, spokesperson for Newsom. “It was focused on the laser to move quickly while protecting community security.”

Representative Brad Sherman (D-Sherman Oaks), whose district includes Pacific Palisades, said that he had urged Robert Fenton, the regional administrator of FEMA, to reconsider his plans.

“Their standard answer is:” Well, we are doing a great job on the elimination of debris, we are sure that it will be sure “,” said Sherman. “But people deserve to have tests.”

If the FEMA decreases, said Sherman, he will turn to state agencies or local researchers to perhaps carry out a soil sampling.

Although the ground test itself is not very expensive, the return to the excavation of additional dirt could cost tens of thousands of dollars per property.

Some federal and local officials have expressed their concern that soil tests encounter contamination pockets unrelated to forest fires that will have to be corrected. Sherman said it was the wrong way to look at him.

“I don’t think residents care if it’s dangerous because of one thing or something else,” said Sherman. “We want to know that it is sure.”

The office of mayor Karen Bass echoes these feelings.

“The mayor said we will rebuild as quickly as possible, but he must be sure,” said Zach Seidl, spokesperson for Bass. “She will work with all partners at all levels of the government so that residents of palisades can believe that their properties are safe from toxins.”

Meanwhile, representative Judy CHU (D-Monterey Park) said that she had contacted federal agencies to obtain answers to her voters in Altana and Pasadena who lost houses and businesses in the late Eaton.

“The health and safety of my voters are the most important in my mind while we are recovering forest fires,” said CHU in a statement. “Survivors must have the ability to return to houses and properties without ashes loaded with toxic to them and the lives of their families. I contact FEMA, EPA, county and environmental experts to go to the bottom of this. I am deeply concerned about the potential of toxins remaining in our soil after the elimination of debris, and I will work with our partners at the local, state and federal level to ensure that our community is sure. »»

The FEMA policy has brought to some survivors of forest fires to consider retiring from the army cleaning program.

This includes Kenneth Ehrlich, a 26 -year -old resident of Pacific Palisades who lost his house in the fire. When he and his two sons returned to the neighborhood, they did not bother to get out of the car.

“Our house was breathtaking, missing, dust,” recalls Ehrlich. “Everything that was held was our fireplace and a basketball hoop. We didn’t even make the turn on our street. We could see that everything was erased. »»

Ehrlich said that he was suspicious of rebuilding on land that can still be contaminated, potentially putting his family at the risk of inhaling or touching toxic dust when they are outside.

In the Pacific palisades, whole districts remain covered with toxic ash and debris of houses and incinerated vehicles. Officials warned that this ashes of forest fires probably contains arsenic, damaging the brain.

The EPA crews paint the ruins of a house on Miami Way which was burned in the fire of the Palisades.

(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

While the heavy rains have led into the charred landscape, those responsible are worried about contaminants who infiltrate more deeply in the soil, which raises concerns concerning the risks of long -term exposure.

For this reason, Ehrlich and some of its neighbors have contacted private entrepreneurs who may be willing to carry out soil tests when they have finished withdrawing forest fire debris and a layer of topsoil.

“I am not comfortable or without confidence in the process of the body of the army,” said Ehrlich. “I am not comfortable or confident with them by taking money from my insurance – it is not transparent and no one knows how much it will cost. And I have no comfort that I will get a clean site at the end. »»

For its part, the US Army Corps of Engineers, which oversees the withdrawal of debris, says that its hands are linked. It is linked to the directives of FEMA which explicitly exclude tests and prohibit teams from returning to eliminate more dirt if contamination persists.

Officials initially praised the speed of cleaning. But now that gaps appear, residents like Ehrlich want the leaders to slow down and discover this.

“We want debris to occur quickly,” said Ehrlich. “But you have to do this in the right way so as not to screw up people. You have to make people a safe cushion on which they can develop and live and do not fall sick. This is not happening at the moment.