On the surface, being one of the very lucky few who didn’t lose your home in the Eaton wildfires sounds like an answered prayer — but for Altadena residents whose homes miraculously withstood the mighty flames, an even bigger fear has been unlocked involving their health.
During wildfires as severe and intense as Eaton, there are a host of contaminants housed inside the surviving homes within the burn zone, including highly toxic lead.
CalTech geology professor Francois Tissot and environmental advocate Jane Potelle, both Altadena residents whose homes survived the fires, painted a grim picture due to their separate findings on the contaminants in the surviving homes in the community. Most alarmingly, lead levels were discovered exceeding 100 times the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) allowable limits.
Additionally, environmental experts estimate that a massive amount of dangerous metals and compounds, such as lead, asbestos and carcinogenic benzene, were unleashed as a result of the Eaton fire. Those contaminants, which were swept away during the fire’s intense winds, got embedded into the soil, seeped into the bloodstream of first responders, and also leaked into the surviving structures, the experts said.
Eaton Fire Residents United, an organization created by Potelle to collect and publish contamination test results, shockingly found lead in all of the 90 homes where contamination tests were conducted. Of those 90 homes, the organization found that 76% were well above the limits of EPA.
Tissot is also extremely concerned about the contaminants in Altadena, specifically how they will impact children in the area. “Children exposed to lead will have diminished cognitive development,” Tissot said. “To me, what’s at stake is the future of a generation of 0-to-3-year-olds. If nothing is done, then these children will be exposed. But it’s totally avoidable.”
Potelle and Tissot both have strongly criticized the lack of local government response, and want to make sure that Altadena residents are not only safe from the toxic chemicals, but also informed of exactly what’s going on.
“Here’s the thing, if you don’t know what’s in your home when you remediate, you could just be pushing those contaminants deeper into your walls, deeper into your personal items,” Potelle explained.
Meanwhile, Tissot is seeking government action in the form of updated guidebooks and fire recovery policies to inform residents of the contamination risks that result from wildfires, and also require contamination testing to be shared on a public database.
“You’ve got people stepping up to fill the void,” said Eaton Fire Residents United member Nicole Maccalla. “There should be an organized, systematic approach to this stuff, but it’s not happening.”
Tissot somberly questions what the future holds for those that are returning to Altadena to rebuild their homes, and also those who have remained in the area as their homes were spared from the flames.
“What was surprising to me is how far it went,” said Tissot. “We got very high levels of lead even miles away from the fire, and what’s difficult is that we still can’t really answer a simple question: How far is far enough to be safe?”
SEE ALSO:
Altadena Residents Rebuild, But Luxury Developers Could Stop Them In Their Tracks
Post Eaton Fire, Altadena Boys Shifts Focus To Youth Mentorship
Altadena Residents Fear How Wildfires Will Impact Their Health
was originally published on
newsone.com
