Wildfires bring pollution hazards for unhoused people in LA: ‘Like breathing in lead’
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As officials urge people to stay indoors, those experiencing homelessness struggle to shield themselves from toxic air. Thick, noxious clouds of smoke engulfed Los Angeles as several wildfires rage across the region, creating heightened hazards for the tens of thousands of unhoused people living on the streets in the county.
![[fire burns home next to street]](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/ed3a7f216ed2bd84017f1dcea96866779434d1c0/0_0_4032_3024/master/4032.jpg?width=445&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none)
As authorities ordered evacuations for more than 82,000 people in various parts of LA and urged others to remain indoors to shield themselves from the gray smoke, unhoused Angelenos were struggling to protect themselves from the pollution. Angel, a 56-year-old woman living out of a camper parked on the outskirts of downtown LA, said the severity of the windstorm made it hard to sleep: “It was so scary, like someone was outside pushing my camper and rocking it back and forth. It almost felt like the aftershocks of an earthquake.”.
Angel, who declined to give her last name, said she has asthma and has been trying to stay inside her vehicle to avoid the toxic air: “I’ve been coughing all morning. It’s hard to breathe. My eyes are itchy.”. She said she spent seven years in a tent and was grateful to now be able to shelter in her vehicle, but was worried about those exposed to the elements: “I hope if people have loved ones out there, they check on them.”.
More than 75,000 people are experiencing homelessness in LA county, with more than 52,000 of them unsheltered, meaning living outside in tents, cars and makeshift structures, according to the latest population estimate, a January 2024 snapshot considered to be an undercount.
