$17 million in fines proposed for Dominguez Channel warehouse fire that caused odor in Carson
The owners and operators of a Carson warehouse where chemicals ran off into the Dominguez Channel last year following a fire, causing a noxious odor to linger in the region for weeks, could face $17 million in state penalties, regulators said this week.
If approved in October, the penalties against makeup companies Day to Day Imports Inc. and Virgin Scents Inc., and property owners Prologis and Liberty Property LLP, would be the largest issued by the State Water Resources Control Board.
The companies’ alleged violations include the discharge of polluted water and hazardous substances, failure to comply with cleanup and abatement orders, and failure to obtain a discharge permit.
Prologis said in a statement that company officials “vigorously dispute any suggestion by the Regional Board that Prologis and Liberty did not take appropriate actions as property owners following the Sept. 30 fire,” and denied any wrongdoing.
Los Angeles County Dist. Atty. George Gascón has asked the California Supreme Court to review the decisions by a trial and an appellate court to knock down one of his most controversial policies: an order barring his prosecutors from seeking harsher punishment for repeat offenders.
“Neither Prologis nor Liberty caused the fire,” the company said. “Nevertheless, in the days following the fire, after the tenant Day to Day failed to clean up the fire debris, Prologis and Liberty stepped forward to remove the debris and prevent stormwater runoff.”
The penalties stem from a fire that erupted at the warehouse on Sept. 30, sending discharge from hundreds of pallets of hand sanitizer and other chemicals into the channel.
The companies occupying the space had been previously cited for fire code and hazardous materials violations before the fire.
It took fire crews three days to extinguish the flames, sending millions of gallons of water and debris into the storm drains leading to the channel.
Shortly after, residents of Carson began reporting a foul odor, resembling vomit or rotten eggs, emanating from the channel. The scent caused nausea and headaches in residents, many of whom temporarily lived in hotels away from it.
In January, Los Angeles County filed a lawsuit accusing Prologis and the makeup companies of negligence in connection with the fire and discharge.
The county alleged that the companies knew of the fire code and hazardous materials violations but did not correct them.
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