"The records depict harried disaster workers appearing to take dangerous shortcuts that could leave hazardous pollution and endanger thousands of survivors poised to return to these communities. The Federal Emergency Management Agency and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers allocated $60 million to hire personnel to monitor daily cleanup operations and document any health and safety risks. The Times obtained thousands of government oversight reports that detail these federal efforts to rid fire-destroyed homes of toxic debris between February and mid-May."
"According to the Army Corps of Engineers, after the last dump truck left, an official with Environmental Chemical Corp., a Burlingame, Calif., company hired to carry out the federal debris removal mission, ordered workers to move the remaining ash and debris to a neighboring property. The crew used construction equipment to move four or five "buckets" worth of fire debris onto the neighboring property."
Federal oversight reports allege that the primary contractor for the Eaton and Palisades fire cleanups dumped toxic ash and misused contaminated soil in violation of state policy. Oversight logs document workers taking shortcuts that likely spread hazardous pollutants and risked the health of thousands of survivors preparing to return. FEMA and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers provided $60 million to hire personnel to monitor daily cleanup operations and record health and safety risks. Thousands of government oversight entries from February through mid-May flagged dozens of procedural violations, including relocating ash onto neighboring properties and improper handling of debris.
Read at Los Angeles Times
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