According to the Los Angeles Fire Department, the final evacuation order has been completely lifted nearly six months after wildfires destroyed the Pacific Palisades.
Fire Department spokesman Lyndsey Lantz said a portion of the coastal area of Los Angeles is still under evacuation orders due to dangerous collisions, potentially explosive lithium-ion batteries and toxic wildfire debris.
The Army Corps of Engineers oversees wildfire cleaning and oversees federal contractors clearing wreckage away from more than 3,200 properties, alleviating some of these concerns.
“We've been on the lookout since most of the debris were cleared,” Lands said.
Only residents and contractors were able to return to the Pacific Palisades section of the evacuation order. Authorities have established vehicle checkpoints, partly to keep the public away from these lingering hazards.
However, with the final evacuation order completely cancelled, the public will be allowed to enter the area. Los Angeles police are expected to remain in the vicinity to resist potential thieves and prevent property crimes.
Although people will be allowed to return to fire-affected communities, public safety and health authorities are still asking them to exercise caution, such as wearing an N-95 mask to prevent exposure to toxic dust.
Elected officials and environmental researchers have attracted serious concern about the possibility of lingering soil pollution as federal disaster agencies decided not to pay for soil testing to confirm that heavy pollution is no longer missed.
The soil sampling program for the Los Angeles Times reporter, the lead and arsenic pollution found by the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, is higher than the California residential property standards for properties already cleaned by federal contractors.
