The Brief

Frustrated with the pace of the long-promised cleanup of radioactive material from the Santa Susana Field Lab, a coalition of activists will be protesting starting today to demand an urgent cleanup of a nuclear waste site near Simi Valley.

The activists are marking the 65th anniversary of a partial nuclear reactor meltdown at the Santa Susana Field Lab in July 1959, which released radioactive material and other toxic chemicals into the soil and surrounding areas. At the time, the Atomic Energy Commission issued a statement claiming that there was "no release of radioactive materials" into the surrounding area, which was later shown to be false.

Even after the meltdown, the 2850-acre site was still used for nuclear development and testing until 1988, according to the Department of Energy. The site was also used for rocket tests conducted by NASA and its contractor Rocketdyne. Ownership of the majority of the site was transferred to Boeing in 1996, though the U.S. government owns the remaining portions.

Activists and environmental groups allege that since Boeing became stewards of the site — and the hazardous chemicals within — the company has been slow to mitigate risks for surrounding residents.

"They are trying to get out of the full, complete cleanup," said Melissa Bumstead, founder and co-director of the group Parents Against Santa Susana Field Lab. "They want to cut corners. And they're minimizing the risk to the public."

For their part, Boeing said the company is following a cleanup procedure laid out by the California Environmental Protection Agency two years ago "to implement a stringent cleanup of the site."

"The cleanup framework provides Boeing with a clear process, schedule, and criteria for future decision-making, while protecting important biological and cultural resources," a Boeing spokesperson wrote in an email to LAist. "Interim soil and groundwater measures are ongoing and the final soil and groundwater cleanup are slated to start as soon as 2026."

Studies conducted over the years have not always been able to demonstrate a significant increase in rates of cancer near the former test site, though many others have.

"Taken together, the studies do not support a link between incidences of cancer and past operations at the Santa Susana Field Laboratory," Boeing wrote to LAist.

Bumstead and her fellow advocates refute this, pointing to several studies that found higher rates of certain types of cancer for people working and living close to the site. For Bumstead, the issue is personal.

"My daughter is 14 now, but she's a two-time cancer survivor, and she's one of 80 kids in our community who've had cancer that we know of," Bumstead said.

The spread of radiation from the site also became a flashpoint for surrounding areas following the Woolsey Fire in 2018, which burned through parts of the SSFL site.

At the time, California's Department of Toxic Substances Control said that they did not believe any toxic chemicals had been released into surrounding areas. However, a study published in 2021 found that while most samples taken nearby did not have elevated radiation levels, radioactive matter did spread outside of the site.

The highest levels of radiation in the study were detected in Thousand Oaks, about 9 miles from the site of Santa Susana Field Lab.

Boeing entered into mediation with the state in 2021, according to the California Department of Toxic Substances Control. In 2022, the parties announced a cleanup agreement to "hold Boeing accountable" after 15 months of negotiations. The state set stringent standards for the cleanup, saying that it should be sufficiently free from waste for residents to live on the site and grow their own produce from the formerly contaminated soil.

That full cleanup is expected to take 10 to 15 years, though state officials said they're looking at ways to expedite the process.

Bumstead and other advocates say that the sooner the site is rid of nuclear waste and other hazardous materials, the better.

"One of the long term problems, one of the reasons why this has taken 65 years, is it's easy to kick the can down the road forever," Bumstead said.

Punk rock — known for its fast, aggressive sound — evolved out of an underground anti-establishment subculture in the 1970s and 80s. Bands like the Black Flag, The Ramones, and X led the way, particularly in Southern California.

While the anniversary of punk’s inception is contested, the Skirball Cultural Center is celebrating the 50th anniversary in the United States, exploring how a generation of misfits challenged the rules and helped reshape culture from the margins, with its latest exhibit titled "Outsiders, Outcasts, Rebels and Weirdos: Punk Culture 1976–86."

Cate Thurston is the chief curator of the exhibit. She joined AirTalk, LAist’s daily news program, to talk about how the local punk scene played a pivotal role in shaping the genre.

L.A.’s punk wave

It wasn’t until the mid 70s that L.A.’s punk scene took off, partially because popular venues were still banking on the mainstream soft rock scene of the time.

Map of the robust Punk scene across the LA Basin, featured in the Skirball exhibit.

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smg photography/Sarah M Golonka

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http://www.smg-photography.com

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“There wasn’t the traditional club infrastructure for it,” said Thurston, adding that punk bands would play wherever they could, including places like the Ukrainian Cultural Center and even more unorthodox venues like roller rinks.

Hong Kong Cafe vs. Madame Wong’s

Performer at the Hong Kong Cafe in Chinatown on Nov. 7, 1981.

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Los Angeles Photographers Collection

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L.A. Public Library

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In the late 70s, two Chinese restaurants — Hong Kong Cafe and Madame Wong’s — sat directly across from each other in L.A.’s Chinatown. These venues led the local punk movement and even had a well-documented rivalry, which you can see reported in the L.A. Times.

Amy in Fullerton called into AirTalk to share that her brother actually started the Hong Kong Cafe.

“We were the first club outside of the Masque to play bands like Fear, X, Black Flag, the Germs, and art bands like Nervous Gender, The Bags, and Alice Bag,” she said.

“Both the Hong Kong Cafe and Madame Wong's were considered institutions in the L.A. punk scene that paved the way for all sorts of punk bands with different styles,” Thurston said.

Madame Wong’s closed its doors in 1985, and Hong Kong Cafe followed a decade later, shutting down in 1995.

Rooted in rebellion

Americans in the mid 70s felt the weight of economic uncertainties, including high gas prices and inflation — not unlike today.

Thurston said this is part of the reason punk rock was born, out of a form of resistance to the overproduced, corporate music in the mainstream at the time.

Bondage pants, leather jackets, and torn T-shirts

A red parachute anarchy shirt from1977, designed by Vivienne Westwood and Malcolm McLaren.

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Courtesy of the Skirball Cultural Center

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Young punk outfits on display.

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Sarah M Golonka

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Courtesy of the Skirball Cultural Center

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Stage diving at a Circle Jerks concert at the Country Club in Reseda in 1982.

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Ann Summa

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Courtesy of the Skirball Cultural Center

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Assorted punk pins.

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Sarah M Golonka

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Courtesy of the Skirball Cultural Center

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Alice Bag of the Bags in Los Angeles in 1978.

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Melanie Nissen

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Courtesy of the Skirball Cultural Center

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Thurston said the punk movement was just as important off the stage as it was on.

“ This is a story of the children it didn't get better for, who created their own world where they fit in and where they found a place for themselves,” she said. “ It was visually different than anything out there at that moment.”

"Outsiders, Outcasts, Rebels + Weirdos: Punk Culture 1976–86" is on display at the Skirball Cultural Center through September. Learn more here.

A Long Beach state lawmaker is pushing legislation that would require local agencies to release 911 call records from immigration detention centers. It’s part of a growing effort in Sacramento to address what experts decry as a critical lack of oversight into the privately managed facilities — oversight failures they say have led to sexual assault, inhumane living conditions and death.

The bill, introduced by state Sen. Lena Gonzalez, would make audio and video recordings of emergency calls to local agencies — be it from a detainee, staff member or attorney — accessible to the public through standard record requests. Agencies, including police and sheriff’s departments, would be legally required to hand them over without delay.

The push comes as the eight privately run immigration detention centers in California, with a combined capacity of nearly 10,000 beds, have seen their populations surge. The average daily population rose 72% — from about 3,100 people in April 2025 to 5,300 this April — as federal immigration enforcement expanded under the Trump administration.

Experts say that as populations grow, conditions have worsened.

State Justice Department inspectors have found inadequate medical care, delays in treatment, overcrowded rooms and meager food portions in facilities. They have also documented excessive use of force by guards and allegations of sexual assault that have gone unchecked.

Between September 2025 and March 2026, six people died at two private detention facilities in California, Adelanto ICE Processing Center and Imperial Regional Detention Facility in Calexico.

A CalMatters investigation published in March found that numerous sexual assault reports last year at the Otay Mesa Detention Center in San Diego went without any proper investigation by local authorities.

When reporters sought records — including audio of 911 calls routed to the sheriff’s office — the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department refused, citing a law enforcement exemption in existing public records law.

Gonzalez believes this will close that gap. Under Senate Bill 423, any call for service would have to be disclosed. The bill includes privacy safeguards: identifying information for crime victims would be protected, and agencies could withhold information if its release would interfere with an active investigation.

State Sen. Lena Gonzalez and Senate President Pro Tempore Mike McGuire listen as lawmakers debate a package of measures to redraw the state’s Congressional districts and put new maps before voters in a special election, at the Capitol in Sacramento, Calif., Thursday, Aug. 21, 2025.

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Rich Pedroncelli

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AP Photo

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The spirit of the legislation, Gonzalez said, is to address the difficulty of accessing the recordings specifically at federal immigration detention centers, which are run by for-profit companies and don’t follow rules set by California’s Public Records Act. The private contractors can and do refuse to release internal incident reports, emergency call logs or security records.

For those trying to build a case or prove instances of abuse in a facility, a recorded call might be the only glimpse into a facility’s operations or way of verifying horrors described by detainees.

“These are in-the-moment recordings of what is happening at the detention facility,” said Eunice Cho, senior staff attorney at the ACLU National Prison Project. “The dispatcher is often asking for critical facts and information about what is happening, and the person on the call is giving their best impression of what exactly is happening at the time of the emergency.”

Sometimes calls are placed by facility staff seeking an ambulance — these facilities often lack the medical capacity to treat detainees — or reporting misconduct by their coworkers, Cho said.

Without passage of bills like this, Cho said, it will only become more difficult to build cases and prove these conditions exist.

Since last January, the federal government has shut down several programs meant to safeguard detainees, such as those informing them of their rights. They have closed oversight offices and eliminated protections for transgender detainees. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has also said it will no longer report the deaths of those recently released from custody, even if their time in detention may have led to it.

Elected officials, once able to make unannounced visits to detention facilities, now must give advanced notice and may be barred from talking with detainees.

Gonzalez, who chairs the state’s Latino caucus, said she and other members requested a visit to the Adelanto ICE facility. They await confirmation.

Momentum for greater state oversight is building in Sacramento, she said, as the issues faced in the detention centers have become “top of mind” for the caucus with multiple bills expected to come to a vote this year, including one for a detainee bill of rights and another that requires additional health inspections inside the facilities.

“We’re all hitting it in different ways, as much as we can,” Gonzalez said.

This story first appeared on The LA Local.

Updated: 10:55 a.m. Tuesday, June 23, 2026

Elissa Puente arrived at Seoul International Park around noon last Thursday with her daughter, expecting to spend the day enjoying a family-friendly World Cup festival.

Puente and her daughter traveled from Burbank and spent the first several hours visiting vendors, watching performances and soaking in the festival atmosphere surrounding the highly anticipated Mexico vs. South Korea World Cup watch party.

But people continued pouring into the narrow viewing area along Irolo Street during the final hour before the match, and despite repeated announcements urging fans to be respectful and keep walkways clear, people around her began pushing. Puente said she was stepped on twice.

“It became a serious safety concern when I saw people were starting to push against my daughter as well. I decided to leave at that point,” Puente said. “I hope for future events there is a time limit, RSVP system or just better crowd control on site.”

Organizers estimate more than 10,000 people attended the June 18 watch party, turning Koreatown into one of the largest World Cup gathering spots in Los Angeles but also raising questions about whether Seoul International Park was prepared for a crowd of that size.

The watch party was promoted as part of Mayor Karen Bass’ “Kick It in the Park” World Cup programming. The city’s website states that official watch parties are limited to 1,000 attendees at a time.

Organizers announced plans for the watch party in March, while Bass unveiled the city’s World Cup programming in May.

Paul “PK” Kim, marketing director for the Los Angeles Korean Festival Foundation, a co-host of the watch party, said he became concerned before the 6 p.m. kickoff.

Kim said he repeatedly urged police officers to restrict access points as crowds continued growing. While no one anticipated a crowd that large, Kim said the response from city agencies fell short once it became clear the park was over capacity.

The Los Angeles Police Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

CD 10 Councilmember Heather Hutt gives opening remarks 30 minutes before the World Cup game kickoff on June 18, 2026.

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Andrew Lopez

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The LA Local

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Questions about crowd control

In a statement, Councilmember Heather Hutt’s office said organizers had expected about 5,000 attendees, but turnout “completely exceeded all expectations.”

Hutt called the event a success and said it demonstrated the demand for additional park and recreation space in Koreatown, where she has supported efforts to expand Seoul International Park.

The turnout at the watch party was not anticipated to be this large, according to Ilanna Morales, a spokesperson for the mayor’s office. Morales said Seoul International Park will continue to be included in the city’s “Kick It in the Park” programming, but the Mexico vs. South Korea watch party was a unique case.

Morales said Seoul International Park was selected by Hutt’s office, while the Los Angeles Korean Festival Foundation was responsible for obtaining permits to close Irolo Street.

Future watch parties at Seoul International Park will return to a more traditional format, according to Morales. Those events are typically held on the park’s soccer field and designed for up to 1,000 attendees because of licensing requirements.

The event was set up as a full-day festival, with the park opening at 10 a.m. Fans quickly filled the park hours before kickoff.

Food and merchandise vendors drew long lines, while performers rotated through a packed entertainment lineup. Throughout Koreatown, bars, restaurants and businesses filled with soccer fans, with crowds spilling onto nearby sidewalks and streets.

But several attendees said crowding became a concern as kickoff approached.

Alexis Castro arrived around 3 p.m. and said conditions were manageable at first, but left 30 minutes before kickoff because of the swelling crowds.

“People were at a standstill and trying to push forward, it was impossible to distinguish the lines for the food stands from all the spectators trying to get closer,” Castro said. “The restroom lines extended down the sidewalk and people were stepping and stumbling over each other.”

Organizers repeatedly asked attendees to keep walkways clear, but several people there said the requests largely went ignored and they did not see anyone actively enforcing them.

Jason Lee said he spent more than an hour parking and entering the event, only to struggle to find a clear view of the match.

“I had to resort to holding my phone up over the crowd of people to see the match through the camera,” he said.

A fan wearing a Mexico jersey and Korean bandana was just one of scores of fans rooting for both teams at the Koreatown watch party on June 18, 2026.

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Andrew Lopez

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Milo Bennett, a Koreatown resident, never made it to the park and eventually joined dozens of people standing outside a fried chicken restaurant and watched through the window. Every business in the strip mall that had a TV was playing the game, he said.

“It was about 10 times more busy and exciting than when the Dodgers won the World Series, but this was a first-round group stage match,” he said.

“I don’t think any of these bars and restaurants ever saw this coming,” he said. “I think the World Cup hype was actually severely underestimated by the city.”

Kim, the marketing director for the Los Angeles Korean Festival Foundation, said the crowding raised alarms because he had seen the aftermath of the 2022 Itaewon crowd crush in Seoul, where more than 150 people were killed after becoming trapped in a narrow alley during Halloween celebrations.

Kim said he urged police officers to restrict access on the Olympic Boulevard side of the park as more people continued arriving.

“It was driving me crazy that they couldn’t read the situation, they were oblivious, they don’t know soccer, they don’t know soccer fans, they reacted too late,” he said.

A crowd crush was also on some other attendees’ minds.

As Jennifer Garcia tried to leave the park, she and her boyfriend overheard someone compare the crowd to Astroworld, the 2021 Houston music festival where 10 people were killed and hundreds more were injured in a crowd crush.

Garcia watched as more fans continued pouring into the area. That’s when she decided it was time to leave.

“We just felt it was going to get uglier so we thought it was best we just leave,” Garcia said.

Kim says it would have made more sense to use the nearby soccer fields as part of the watch party setup.

“They just put everybody in a narrow corridor and had people climbing fences and trees. They could’ve put a screen in an empty field,” Kim said.

Fans gather on the bleachers to watch the game streamed to a TV by the soccer field at Seoul International Park.

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Andrew Lopez

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The LA Local

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Not long after kickoff, some fans took matters into their own hands.

Right outside the soccer field, Koreatown resident LJ Kim set up a television by the bleachers after realizing many people couldn’t see the jumbo screens.

Kim, who lives a few blocks away, said he went home, grabbed a television and battery pack, and returned to set up his own viewing area.

“I’m a problem solver,” he said. “We want to be together. We want the aura, we want the vibes.”

A third watch party is scheduled for June 24 at Liberty Park, where fans can watch South Korea take on South Africa. The festival begins at 2 p.m. and kickoff is scheduled for 6 p.m.

Student journalist Nathan Reyes contributed to this story.

This story first appeared on The LA Local.

Clouds of smoke billow from the Lineage cold storage facility in bursts. During brief breaks in the smoke, Ivan Arredondo rushes to cross the yellow caution tape to reach his home after waiting more than 20 minutes near Jim’s Burgers on Indiana Street. 

“At night, the smoke gets in even when I close the windows and doors,” Arredondo said as firefighters worked Sunday to extinguish the fire behind him. “It has affected me; my throat has been feeling hoarse, almost like I’m starting to get a cough.”

The Boyle Heights resident hasn’t been able to work for the last five days because his van, which holds his work materials, cannot move in or out of the area blocked by the fire at the Lineage facility.

Arredondo said neither he nor his neighbors had been contacted by city or county officials and wished more support were available. 

“I’d like for them to come and give us a hand with some [money] for food or something during this time that we can’t work,” said Arredondo.

Two pedestrians walk near the Lineage fire site in Boyle Heights on June 22, 2026.

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Isaac Ceja

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Boyle Heights Beat

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Since the fire broke out Wednesday, residents living closest to the facility have endured smoky conditions that they say have disrupted daily life, affected their health and limited their ability to work as firefighters continue battling the blaze.

By Sunday afternoon, the Los Angeles Fire Department had removed large sections of the facility’s exterior walls, allowing crews to better access the fire. Smoke continued to pour out in bursts as residents watched and recorded video from nearby sidewalks.

According to a Sunday evening alert from LAFD, the next phase of operations will focus on accessing and extinguishing the remaining pockets of fire deeper inside the building. 

“Although smoke conditions are trending in a positive direction, intermittent increases in smoke may occur as crews open walls and other concealed spaces to locate and extinguish hidden fire,” the department said.  

Firefighters work to extinguish the fire at the Lineage cold storage facility near La Puerta and Union Pacific avenues in Boyle Heights on June 22, 2026.

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Isaac Ceja

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Boyle Heights Beat

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Maria Gonzalez, 49, lives three blocks away from the fire. She says the smell of smoke has left her feeling dizzy, with irritated eyes and caused her daughter to develop a cough. 

“We have five days with this fire and it’s hard for us to just be inside the house and not be able to go outside because the smoke is so bad and smells so horrible,” Gonzalez said while recording video near the fire site.

After days of calling to request an air purifier, she said she didn’t receive a call back. She was eventually added to a list when she went to ask for help at one of the smoke relief shelters.

Although she knew shelter space was available, Gonzalez wished local officials could help provide a hotel room and said transporting her family and four dogs to a shelter would be difficult. 

That Sunday afternoon, Antonio Chapa, director of field operations for L.A. County Supervisor Hilda Solis, led a small team of people door-to-door on Indiana Street distributing free air purifiers. The team handed out about 30 units. Councilmember Ysabel Jurado’s and her team had also been in residential neighborhoods near the fire site, distributing air purifiers and masks. 

Antonio Chapa, left, director of field operations for Los Angeles County Supervisor Hilda Solis, distributes air purifiers on Indiana Street in Boyle Heights on June 22, 2026.

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Isaac Ceja

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Boyle Heights Beat

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Manuel Valle, 84, who lives near Indiana and 1st streets, rode his bike toward Olympic Boulevard to distribute masks throughout the neighborhood. 

“My kids don’t like it,” Valle said before joking about his bad knees. “But I’ve gotta do it; it’s me.”

Valle is a member of the Brooklyn Ave. Health Club, a volunteer group for senior citizens that cleans up around the Evergreen Cemetery. He said his efforts near the fire are simply an extension of his work. 

Valle added that on Sunday morning, for the first time since the fire started, the smoke drifted directly to his home even though he lives nearly two miles away.

Smoke rises from the Lineage cold storage facility in Boyle Heights on June 22, 2026.

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Isaac Ceja

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Boyle Heights Beat

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The smoke entering the home of Miguel Ocegueda Castillo, 53, forced him to relocate his son and his elderly mother, who was starting to feel dizzy.

“It’s frustrating because when you’re here for a while, you start to feel like you’re going to throw up and we have already breathed in enough of this smoke,” Castillo said. He has lived directly across from the Lineage building for 15 years.

Castillo said no one from the local government has reached out to him to offer any support. 

“No one, no one has come to talk, no one has come and asked if I need anything,” Castillo said. “I don’t know what the local government is waiting for- for a tragedy to occur or something more serious or what… on top of what is already going on.”

For now, Castillo said his focus remains on his family. He goes in and out of the house to grab necessities, but says that he’s been forced to work less in order to do so.