Homeowners in Altadena say they’ve been unable to return to their homes post-Eaton Fire due to dangerous toxins near the burn area.
New test results show elevated levels of lead in homes still standing near the site of the brush fire, according to a map configured by Altadena residents affected by the blaze.
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WATCH HERE“We are existing in a disaster after the disaster, and if we don’t get testing for every single one of these residences in Altadena, people are going to get very sick,” said Jane Lawton Moore, who lives in the community.
She’s one of several residents waiting for results from tests inside her home to gauge her return. Although her home survived the blaze, she’s been hesitant to return due to the possibility of contaminants – a concern many other Altadena residents share.
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SIGN UP Lawton Moore’s worries prompted her to join Eaton Fire Residents United, a coalition of Altadena residents who share indoor environmental testing results to compare and compile them into a map.
“We have some serious concerns about what's going on in each one of these homes around us, and extended into Pasadena and Sierra Madre, as well,” she said. “The summer months are coming; people are going to be going inside during the really hot days.”
As of Wednesday, Eaton Fire Residents United’s map showed that more than 100 homes tested positive for lead. The toxin, which is a heavy metal, is linked to serious health problems that include damage to the brain and the nervous system, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.
Nicole Maccalla, who also hasn’t returned to her Altadena home, works in data sciences and is also part of the group.
“Ninety-seven percent of homes are in a danger zone,” she said. “That's nuts, right? And we have you look at the map -- it's representative. It spreads from Pasadena, Altadena, Sierra Madre; it's in the burn zone, it's outside the burn zone.”
Caltech has also released its studies of test samples taken from 52 homes in the fire area and in communities as far as Highland Park. According to its results, lead was transported by the fire plume and winds more than 7 miles away from the burn zone.
The County of Los Angeles also posted its results of soil testing in Altadena. It found those levels were above the state standard of lead in 80% of the samples collected.
To help residents, the LA County Board of Supervisors passed a motion to conduct soil testing for homes within a 1-mile radius of the burn scar.
