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Impact Stories
AltaMed Mobilizes $2M+ Response to Lineage Warehouse Fire, Providing Medical Care and Essential Supplies
When the Lineage warehouse fire sent smoke and ash through Boyle Heights, AltaMed brought medical care and essential supplies to a community facing weeks of disruption and uncertainty.
A chorus of emergency alerts rang through the building at the AltaMed Health Services Corporate Campus.
"Due to building fire, use caution when outdoors in the area of East Los Angeles. This also includes the area of Boyle Heights."
From the roof, a plume of black smoke stretched toward downtown Los Angeles. Three miles away, the Lineage Logistics warehouse was on fire.
Almost immediately, Rosa Alcala had a hunch that the mobile unit would be deployed. "I've been managing the mobile unit for over 23 years, so I know that when something like that happens, we're going to get called on," said Rosa, Manager of Community Outreach at AltaMed Health Services.
Within days, the County of Los Angeles contacted AltaMed to request emergency health care services. AltaMed joined a coordinated regional response that included local government, the Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles, other mobile health units, and community partners working to meet the needs of residents impacted by the fire.
Having responded to the Eaton fire in January 2025, the team was no stranger to emergency response.
Health Care at the Center of Need
The County initially directed the mobile unit to Pecan Recreation Center, several miles from the fire. Some community members came seeking resources, but the response was smaller than expected.
After several days, the County redirected the unit to Costello Park, less than a mile from the warehouse.
“It was chaos. Now we’re only a few blocks away, and you’re seeing the people who are the most affected. People who have been living with the smell and the ash for weeks.”
Rosa Alcala
Manager of Community Outreach
The team quickly saw the effects of prolonged exposure. Patients reported headaches, eye irritation, sore throats, nausea, coughing, skin irritation, shortness of breath, and other respiratory concerns.
190
medical visits provided by mobile unit
20
clinical staff rotated through mobile unit
424
individuals served by mobile unit
Responding to the Needs of the Community
The response changed as the team learned more about what residents were experiencing.
After seeing a high number of respiratory concerns and requests for eye irrigation, staff adjusted the supplies kept on hand to better meet the community’s needs.
They also encountered needs that had little to do with the fire itself, but everything to do with the toll it was taking on families.
One woman arrived after waking at 5:00 a.m. to get in line by 6:00 a.m. so she could secure resources for her family. In the rush, she had forgotten to eat and take her medications and began experiencing symptoms of hypoglycemia.
The team checked her blood sugar, provided hydration and snacks, and stayed with her to make sure she was safe.
For Rosa, the moment was a reminder of what emergency response can look like at the individual level.
“Sometimes the people carrying the heaviest burdens are the ones who put themselves last,” she said.
A Network of Care
AltaMed’s Boyle Heights clinics also became an important part of the response. Five clinics serve the area, including three satellite clinics embedded within the William Mead, Ramona Gardens, and Estrada Courts public housing communities.
The clinics provided care and distributed essential supplies, including air purifiers, helping residents address their immediate health needs and protect their health at home.
24%
of AltaMed's patient population lives in region
92,000
visits in first 100 days after fire was extinguished
27,000
pediatric patients in potentially affected area
Together, AltaMed’s clinics and mobile unit became part of a broader network of care across the community, working alongside local agencies and other organizations responding to the disaster.
Showing Up is Part of the Mission
For Rosa, mobile health care is about showing the community that you support them.
“In my experience with the Mobile Unit, there has never been somebody who isn’t grateful that you’re there,” she said. “That’s what our mission is, right? Our mission is to serve the underserved, to serve our communities. It’s amazing to be able to serve the community where they are.”
Rosa was later recognized as KNX’s Hero of the Week for her commitment to the community. Her response to the recognition was characteristically humble.
“I love helping those in need, and I don’t expect anything back. I’m very grateful, and that only motivates me to keep going.”
This response was made possible in part through the support of public and private partners, including Centene Foundation and Health Net, California Community Foundation, and Direct Relief, whose partnership helped AltaMed provide care and essential resources to the Boyle Heights community.
