A fire that has burned for a week at a 500,000-square-foot cold food storage building in Boyle Heights, a neighborhood east of downtown Los Angeles, could be out by the end of the day, clearing the way for a cleanup that will involve removing millions of pounds of food from the site.

Firefighting Efforts

Firefighters said Wednesday that they are aiming for a knockdown by Wednesday night. They’re still encountering smoldering debris and a hotspot that broke out in the middle of the building. Water-dropping helicopters made about 10 drops of 500 gallons each through a hole in the building to douse the hotspot.

Once the fire is out, the building will be turned back over to its owners. The property owner will then be responsible for removing debris, including about 85 million pounds of food stored by Lineage.

Cause of the Fire

Authorities have not announced a cause of the fire, but said it originated on the rooftop. Lineage’s statement pointed at testing done by the owners of the solar array.

The building, called Big Bear, stores seafood, pork, beef, poultry and other items before they’re shipped to grocery stores and restaurants. The temperature-controlled warehouse is one of several in the United States operated by Lineage.

Original reporting: NBC4 Los Angeles — read the source article.