Amidst the stench and worry of rats, millions of pounds of rotting flesh have been hauled from Boyle Heights

The city of Los Angeles has developed a plan and has begun removing millions of pounds of rotting food from a burned-out warehouse in Boyle Heights, where workers are putting in place measures to reduce the smell of pests that could attract work.

Traps have been placed outside the damaged warehouse and on nearby residential streets, and city officials said Lineage, the company that runs the facility, is using sprays and misters to control odors from rotting food.

“The fire may be over, but the crisis is far from over for families, workers, students and small businesses living with odors, pests, truck traffic and remaining uncertainty,” Los Angeles Councilwoman Ysabel Jurado said in a prepared statement Monday.

Firefighters battled for several days to knock down the blaze that occasionally shrouded Boyle Heights and East LA neighborhoods in smoke after it ignited on June 17. Large metal stacks of melting food inside the warehouse prevented firefighters from safely entering the building to reach the blaze directly, forcing them to demolish part of the building’s exterior to battle the flames.

But the lengthy task appeared to be a long way off as of Monday, as city officials said they were waiting for a trailer of heavy lifters to come down city streets to clean up the damaged warehouse, while other workers simultaneously tried to contain the odors from the site and the hungry insects.

85 million pounds of food, including meat and fish, is expected to be pulled from landfills in Los Angeles, Ventura and Riverside counties.

Lineage estimates it will need 5,000 truckloads, according to a statement from Mayor Karen Bass’ office.

“Natural hazards from industrial disasters often fall on communities like Boyle Heights,” Bass said in a statement. “Those involved will be held accountable, and the City is working with many organizations to provide services to families and business owners who need them most.”

A small team from the Los Angeles Fire Department is expected to remain in the area to monitor the area in case things go wrong. But Lineage has a contract with a private fire company to keep water flowing through the smoldering debris fields if necessary as crews try to remove the debris, according to the mayor’s office.

According to Bass’ office, trucks entering and exiting the area will avoid residential streets and travel on already established tow lanes in an effort to minimize the impact on nearby neighborhoods.

Lineage also contracts with Orkin and Signal Restoration services to manage the potential for pests to be attracted to rotting food.

Cats USA, a contractor for the city of Los Angeles, has also been tasked with conducting pest inspections at Bass’s destination, according to the statement, and is working to place traps near the warehouse and along residential streets.

“USA cats will monitor the traps three times a day and will adjust the frequency if necessary,” according to the statement.

To control odors, city officials said Lineage is testing the use of chlorine dioxide as a deodorizer as food is unloaded from trucks.

Lineage also uses misters inside the building to try to eliminate food odors until they are removed from the premises.

“Each truck will also be deodorized as it leaves the warehouse,” the statement read.

The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power is also testing and monitoring water quality several times a day as the cleanup effort continues, according to the statement. Current testing shows that Boyle Heights tap water is safe.