Several Homes Remain Evacuated After Tuesday's Fire At Maywood Metal Recycling Center

MAYWOOD (CBSLA.com) — Authorities say the residents of at least 10 homes remain evacuated Friday following an explosive fire at a metal recycling center in Maywood earlier this week.

The fire was fully extinguished and all units cleared out of the area at 8 p.m. Thursday, following three days of firefighting and cleanup, Los Angeles County Supervising Fire Dispatcher Miguel Ornelas said.

Public health officials will now assess the scene and determine when the remaining evacuees can return home, Los Angeles County sheriff's Lt. Alex Salinas said.

Residents on the south side of 52nd Street were allowed to go back to their homes Wednesday night, but people who live on the street's north end – closer to the site of the blaze – were not immediately allowed to return to their homes.

Officials said they wanted to analyze samples of the ash and residue that settled on local homes as a further measure of safety testing. Air testing was also underway in the area.

The federal Environmental Protection Agency began checking the site for "heavy metals" at about 2 p.m. Thursday, county fire Inspector Gustavo Medina said.

The results of the EPA's examination should be in by Saturday morning, Medina said, and "if the results are positive, a good reading, then we'll be able to have the residents back into their homes, hopefully by (sometime) Saturday."

The three-alarm fire at Panda International Trading and SKOOR Metals, a recycling center and a precious metals recovery operation in the 3500 block of Fruitland Avenue, ripped through two commercial buildings early Tuesday, sparking explosions and sending a thick plume of noxious smoke over a large swath of Southern California.

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