The Brief

Have you been wondering, “When will the new 2024 COVID vaccine be available?”

The short answer is: It’s here. But even though the “fall vaccine” has been approved much earlier this year than the 2023 COVID vaccine was, just like last year it may take a while for these shots to become widely available to the public.

When will you the new COVID vaccines become available

On Thursday, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) signed off on these updated COVID vaccines from Moderna and Pfizer (also known as Comirnaty), which should start to roll out across the United States in the coming weeks — as the 2024 summer wave of infections continues around the country.

Earlier this year, the CDC recommended that the updated shots be available to everyone age 6 months and older through pharmacies like CVS, Walgreens, Rite Aid and Safeway, as well as health care providers, county public health departments and community clinics.

These COVID vaccines usually become available at pharmacies first, because pharmacies take their cue from the federal government and not the state — but with vaccines needing to be shipped, it might still be a while before vaccinations are available. For example, CVS is currently offering appointments for the new COVID vaccine starting no earlier than late August, and Walgreens is similarly offering appointments that begin September 6.

Remember: Unlike previous rounds of the vaccine, the FDA and the CDC stopped calling these updated shots “boosters” in 2023 — so you won’t see that language online around appointments. Instead, they refer to these annual fall vaccines as a “new” or “updated” vaccines that have been reformulated to better target a more recent strain of the coronavirus: This time, the omicron variant known as KP.2 that was common earlier this year.

Why do the new COVID vaccine rollouts seem different than they used to?

If you’re wondering why the new COVID vaccine seems to take so long to become widely available now, why you can no longer walk into any vaccination location to get an updated shot and why health insurance matters now, it’s because of the major change that came into effect last year: The federal government has stopped footing the bill for COVID vaccines.

These shots have now transitioned into the traditional health care market, like many other kinds of vaccines. So for most people with health insurance, insurers will now cover the cost of getting the new COVID vaccine direct, much like your plan might cover your flu shot. This is why you’ll hear many county public health officials urging people to first seek out the new vaccine via their health care provider (and also why those county-run vaccination sites that were so common at the height of the pandemic now don’t exist, at least on the same scale.)

But COVID vaccines now being purchased and distributed through the health care market now also means it’s far less simple for people without health insurance to find a free shot. Jump to “How do I find a COVID vaccine if I’m uninsured?”

Is the Novavax COVID vaccine available as well as Moderna and Pfizer’s new vaccines?

Not yet, although an updated version of the Novavax vaccine looks to be on the way a little later.

Unlike Pfizer and Moderna’s new COVID shots, the Novavax vaccine is a non-mRNA, protein-based vaccine. One reason some people choose the Novavax vaccine is based on aftereffects from getting the shot — as Science has reported, Novavax “appeared less likely than mRNA shots to cause side effects like headache and fatigue” in clinical trials.

How effective is this new COVID vaccine against the current strains?

Much like the flu shot, COVID vaccines have now become annual shots offered in the fall — and their “recipe” gets updated each year in the hope of maximum efficacy against current strains.

This new 2024–2025 COVID vaccine is an updated shot that supersedes and replaces the 2023–2024 shot, which you should now consider outdated. The recipe for this new vaccine will address a newer target: The KP.2 subvariant of omicron.

COVID strains are a moving target, and as you can see from the CDC’s COVID Variant Tracker, KP.2 is no longer the dominant subvariant in the U.S. — that’s currently KP.3.1.1. But this family of omicron subvariants is closely enough related that the vaccines promise cross-protection. A Pfizer spokesman said the company submitted data to the FDA showing its updated vaccine “generates a substantially improved response” against multiple virus subtypes compared to last fall’s vaccine.

“The vaccine is not intended to be perfect. It’s not going to absolutely prevent COVID-19,” said Dr. Peter Marks, director of the FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research in a statement announcing the approval decision. ““But if we can prevent people from getting serious cases that end them up in emergency rooms, hospitals or worse — dead — that’s what we’re trying to do with these vaccines.”

The new vaccines should cut the risk of getting COVID by 60% to 70% and reduce the risk of getting seriously ill by 80% to 90%, Marks says.

Who can get the new COVID vaccine?

As of August 22, anyone age 6 months and up who got their last COVID vaccine shot at least two months ago — whether that was their primary vaccination series or their last booster shot — can get an updated COVID vaccine from Pfizer or Moderna, as soon as vaccination appointments become available. As in 2023, appointments may not become immediately widespread, depending on your location. Jump straight to where you can find a new COVID vaccine near you.

“Vaccination continues to be the cornerstone of COVID-19 prevention,” said the FDA’s Marks. “Given waning immunity of the population from previous exposure to the virus and from prior vaccination, we strongly encourage those who are eligible to consider receiving an updated COVID-19 vaccine to provide better protection against currently circulating variants.”

There is no specific guidance for certain age groups, but, as with other vaccines, children under 12 will be offered a pediatric (smaller) dose of this vaccine.

This 'fall' vaccine is available pretty early this year. Who should get it straight away?

The FDA’s Marks said that for his part, “when this gets into pharmacies I will probably be on line as soon as it gets rolled out.”

“Right now we’re in a wave, so you’d like to get protection against what’s going on right now,” he said. “So I would probably get vaccinated in as timely a manner as possible. Because right now the match is reasonably close. You’re probably going to get the most benefit you’re going to get from this vaccine against what’s currently circulating.”

Dr. Peter Chin-Hong, an infectious disease specialist at UCSF, said that older folks (age 65 and over) or people who are immunocompromised who have neither had a COVID vaccine in the last year nor had a COVID infection should seek out their new vaccine as soon as they can. These were the “folks I saw in the hospital very ill with COVID in the past few months,” said Chin-Hong.

Additionally, for Chin-Hong, the best vaccine is the one you actually get, so “at the end of the day, convenience trumps everything,” he said. “If you are motivated to get the updated COVID shot when it comes out sooner rather than later, just do it.”

“Getting it in your arm when you are motivated trumps being strategic about the whole thing,” said Chin-Hong.

Who should consider waiting a little while to get the new vaccine?

Delaying getting the updated vaccine may be right for …

Those who want the best possible immunity for a winter wave — and over the holidays

Marks said also said that even though he personally will be getting his vaccine straightaway, others might consider waiting until September or October if they’re particularly focused on having maximal protection through the anticipated winter COVID wave, as well as over the holidays. “Getting vaccinated sometime in the September to early October time frame seems like a pretty reasonable thing to do to help bring you protection through the December/January time frame,” Marks said.

For Chin-Hong, the “sweet spot” for getting the new COVID vaccine, if you’re not in that higher-risk group above, “is still some time in October so that antibodies peak in the winter when things are expected to be worse than the summer.”

“This is going to apply to most people,” he said. And while “the vaccine’s superpower is protection against serious disease, hospitalization and death,” the updated shot “does have the bonus of increasing the force field against getting infected as well,” said Chin-Hong. “Because there are so many events after October (Thanksgiving, holiday get togethers, Christmas, New Years), you may also want your antibodies to peak then for that bonus of lowering infection risk.”

People who've had a COVID vaccine — or a COVID infection — recently

Another reason you’d want to wait to seek the new vaccine: if you got your last COVID shot less than two months ago, or you’ve had a COVID infection less than three months ago. (PDF) (If your case was asymptomatic, use the date of your positive test instead of the onset of your symptoms.)

“If you have received a vaccine over the summer or got infected over the summer, there is no need to rush out and get the new vaccine as you will be well protected,” said Chin-Hong. “Wait until October and get both flu and COVID shots at the same time.”

People who are uninsured and need a free vaccine

The CDC’s Bridge Access Program, which was launched in September 2023 to provide free COVID vaccinations to uninsured people, was forecast to last until December — but is instead ending this month. And while a CDC spokesperson said that the agency will be making “$62 million of unused vaccine contract money” available to states to help vaccinate people without health insurance, right now it’s still unclear how that will work practically.

Waiting for your fall COVID shot, said Chin-Hong, will “give it more time for that system to be put into place so you won’t be charged if you don’t have insurance.”

Should I get my 2024 flu shot at the same time as my new COVID vaccine?

It’s totally fine, and safe, to get your flu shot at the same time as your new COVID vaccine, and when appointments roll out more widely you’ll often find that COVID vaccine appointments will prompt you to “add on” a flu shot at the same session — especially at pharmacies. Although, if you’re trying to schedule your kid’s vaccinations, the CDC advised in 2023 that you first talk to your pediatrician about the best schedule for the COVID and flu vaccines (and now the RSV — respiratory syncytial virus — preventive treatment too).

That said, the recommendations medical professionals make about when to get a flu shot are based on the fact that, like with your COVID vaccine, it takes about two weeks after you get vaccinated for antibodies to develop and provide protection against the virus.

The CDC says that September and October “are generally good times” to get your flu shot. In 2023, UCSF’s Chin-Hong told KQED that his “optimal sweet point” for getting this shot is “sometime before Halloween” — but notes that this is based on traditional predictions of flu season starting in November and peaking around January or February. If flu cases start to rise earlier, you should seek out your flu shot sooner, he said. And ultimately, in the spirit of any vaccine being better than no vaccine, “do what is most convenient,” he advised.

Where can I find a new COVID vaccine this fall, when they become available?

Don’t assume you’ll be proactively contacted about getting the new COVID vaccine.

Remember that a certain location may only be offering a certain brand of the new vaccine, whether that’s Moderna or Pfizer (or soon, Novavax). So be sure that the location you’re walking into or making an appointment for offers the type of updated vaccine you need or want.

Also make sure the appointment you schedule for your new vaccine is at least two months after your last COVID vaccine shot, or three months after your last COVID infection. (When you’re making an appointment for a new vaccine, you’ll likely be asked for the date of your last COVID vaccine dose or booster dose for this reason, to ensure you’re not getting your shot too soon.)

If you don’t have health insurance, jump to what we know about COVID vaccination for uninsured folks.

1. Find a new COVID vaccine through a local pharmacy, when available

For future reference, pharmacies are usually the first place new vaccine shots become available when announced because pharmacies take their cue from the federal government, not the state.

For example, CVS’s COVID vaccination homepage says that the pharmacy chain is now “waiting on the arrival of the new 2024–2025 COVID-19 vaccines,” and that “you can schedule an appointment online now for a date in the near future.” Walgreens is also offering appointments for the new vaccine starting September 6.

Remember that pharmacies can’t vaccinate kids under 3, except for CVS MinuteClinics, who are permitted to vaccinate kids as young as 18 months old.

If you have health insurance, you should be able to give your insurer’s details at a pharmacy vaccination appointment to have the cost of your shot billed to them. One big exception to this: If you get your health care through a health system like Kaiser Permanente, you almost certainly won’t be able to get your new COVID vaccine for free (i.e., covered by your insurance) at a pharmacy like CVS or Walgreens, the way you can’t get your flu shot covered by Kaiser at a pharmacy either.

Ultimately, if you are a member of a health system like Kaiser and are unsure about what your health insurance covers, reach out to your provider to check if you will need to obtain your new COVID vaccine through them, in order to have it covered.

2. Find a new COVID vaccine through your health care provider, when available

If you have health insurance, check with your health care provider to see whether they can offer you an updated COVID vaccine. The San Francisco Department of Public Health stresses that “Health care providers are the first place to go for COVID-19 and flu health care.” That said, you could still be looking at a wait for supplies to reach your health care provider, even after the new shots were first authorized.

If you don’t have health insurance but get medical care through a city- or county-run provider, you should check with that location to see whether they can offer you the new COVID vaccine.

In addition to trying to talk with your health care provider directly, check the website of your provider to see whether it’s offering the ability to make appointments, and sign up for their vaccine notifications if that’s an option.

3. Find a new COVID vaccine through vaccines.gov, when available

Visit the federal government’s vaccines.gov website to see when appointments for the new updated COVID vaccine in or near your zip code become available.

A message on the site states that the CDC is updating this tool, “including replacing the vaccine locator with a pharmacy lookup tool to help people find a pharmacy near them, and this “lookup tool will be added once 2024–2025 flu and COVID-19 vaccines become widely available.”

4. Find a new Moderna or Pfizer COVID vaccine through My Turn, when available

Throughout the pandemic, My Turn has been the state’s site for all Californians to schedule vaccination appointments or find walk-in locations, regardless of health insurance status.

Because the new COVID vaccines are now being distributed through the traditional health care market, My Turn’s services have now been geared primarily toward uninsured people.

If you visit the My Turn page, select “Make an Appointment.” My Turn will ask for your information, and the ZIP code or location you’d like to use to search for vaccine appointments. You can give your home location, or input other locations to see which sites might be available farther away.

If you can’t travel to a clinic for your new COVID vaccine because of health or transportation issues, you can note this when registering on My Turn, and a representative from the CDPH is supposed to call you to arrange an in-home visit or transportation.

My Turn will ask you to provide a cellphone number and an email address. The state says this is so you can use two-factor authentication to confirm your identity and make your appointment, and to prevent bots from automatically scooping up available appointments online.

If you don’t have an email address or a cellphone number, or you have questions, you can call the California COVID-19 hotline at (833) 422-4255 (Monday–Friday 8 a.m.–8 p.m., Saturday and Sunday 8 a.m.–5 p.m. PT) and sign up over the phone. Both English-speaking and Spanish-speaking operators are available. Callers needing information in other languages will be connected to a translation service that offers assistance in over 250 languages.

5. Find a new COVID vaccine through your county, when available

Visit your county’s public health website to learn if your county will soon be offering the new updated COVID vaccine to its residents, particularly those who are uninsured or under-insured.

Where can I find a new COVID vaccine near me if I’m uninsured?

The CDC’s Bridge Access Program, which was launched in September 2023 to provide free COVID vaccinations to uninsured people, was forecast to last until December — but is instead ending this month.

A CDC spokesperson told KQED that the agency will now be supplying states with “$62 million of unused vaccine contract money,” to support state and local health departments this respiratory virus season “and help improve access for uninsured and underinsured Americans to COVID vaccines.” Right now, details of how this will practically work for folks without insurance in California is unclear, so we’ll keep updating this section as we find out new information relating to how people without health insurance can find a free or low-cost vaccine.

Uninsured children ages 18 and under can still get free COVID vaccines — and other free immunizations — as part of the Vaccines for Children Program.

Why can't I get my new COVID vaccine at a pharmacy if I have Kaiser health insurance?

Something to watch for this fall: If you get your health care through a health system like Kaiser Permanente, you’ll be asked to pay out-of-pocket if you try to get your new COVID vaccine at a pharmacy like CVS or Walgreens.

Why? Usually, if you have health insurance, you should be able to give your insurer’s details at a pharmacy vaccination appointment to have the cost of your shot billed to them. Health systems like Kaiser are the exception to this, and so you almost certainly won’t be able to get your new COVID vaccine at a pharmacy like CVS or Walgreens, the way you can’t get your flu shot covered by Kaiser at a pharmacy either.

Instead, last year Kaiser recommended its members receive their updated COVID shot at a Kaiser facility. The health system’s website says that “when provided by Kaiser Permanente, COVID-19 vaccines are covered at no cost,” but that “most California members” apart from Medi-Cal members will need to pay for the shot if obtained elsewhere. (KP.com also states that you “may be able to get up to half of the cost reimbursed” from Kaiser if you do.)

This meant that in 2023, people with health insurance through Kaiser faced a longer wait for their new COVID vaccine than folks with other types of insurance, unless they were prepared to pay these large costs up-front. CVS, for example, charges $190.99 for the new COVID vaccine “if CVS is not in network with your insurance plan.”

We’ll keep updating this guide with information as we get it. Find a Kaiser location near you that may be offering the new COVID vaccine when it’s available.

At the center of the 1998 film Practical Magic is a story of sisterhood — and, well, a healthy round of margaritas. In the newly released sequel, Practical Magic 2, the cocktails make their celebrated return.

Margaritas all around in Practical Magic 2

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Courtesy Warner Bros. Pictures

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For anyone who watched the original midnight margarita scene — with Aunt Franny, Aunt Jet and their nieces, Sally and Gillian Owens, gathering around their warm New England kitchen dancing to the tune of Harry Nilson's "Coconut" — the joyous boisterousness is likely seared well into memory.

As we turn toward Halloween, we figured the ghouls, witches and warlocks of Los Angeles may well be inspired to roam under the cloak of darkness seeking their own midnight margaritas.

Here are the best places to visit across the city that will be open to host your own shenanigans — at midnight and beyond. So go out past 10 p.m., live a little.

Bar Flores (Echo Park)

The hibiscus-infused Flores margarita at Bar Flores in Echo Park.

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Andrea Aliseda

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LAist

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The hibiscus-infused Flores margarita at Bar Flores delights with its pink hue and wonderfully balanced profile. Enjoy it with your choice of agave spirit, share a pitcher with friends, or have a Tommy or Cadillac margarita by request. Owner Karla Flores highlights their humpday special, Margarita Wednesday, where the margaritas are $9.

Daisy (Sherman Oaks)

Daisy's takes on the cocktail include mangoneada and baja slaw.

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Andrea Aliseda

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LAist

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Daisy, the bar in Sherman Oaks dedicated to margaritas, is fashioned as an Angeleno take on the norteño cantinas of Baja California that birthed the drink. Unique versions of the cocktail, like mangoneada margarita and baja slaw margarita, invigorate the experience, but salient standards like the Cadillac and Tommy margaritas make for a well-rounded menu.

Footsies (Cypress Park)

Footsies off-menu options include watermelon, classic lime, and spicy kumquat tamarindo.

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Andrea Aliseda

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LAist

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Footsies welcomes you with its black U-shaped tufted booths, wide dance floor, rustic charm and some quality midnight margaritas. Theirs are off-menu, but consist of watermelon, classic lime and spicy kumquat tamarindo. Beverage director Raul Morales says to look for the rotating chalkboard, which changes once a month, for his seasonally-inspired drinks.

Shim Sham (Filipinotown)

Shim Sham's offers a class margaritas, no strings attached.

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Andrea Aliseda

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LAist

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Count on this lively horseshoe bar, with their idiosyncratic whole dill pickle martini, to give you your midnight margarita fix. Shim Sham's is as classic as it can get, with just tequila, lime juice and sugar on ice. Pay them a visit during their nightly happy hour from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. for an $8 margarita.

Mermaid (Little Tokyo)

Mermaid's version offers a sweet, tangy, tropical tide of guava and pineapple.

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Andrea Aliseda

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LAist

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Divey and glowing in blue light with an underwater motif, Mermaid in Little Tokyo is the place to go for a seaside take on the margarita. Their cocktail, tropical margarita, offers a sweet and boozy drink that is carried by the tangy, tropical tide of guava and pineapple for a refreshing sip.

People who have never relied on a food bank before are increasingly walking through the doors of Community Space Food Bank looking for something to eat.

Some tell founder Gaines Newborn that their CalFresh benefits have been reduced or ended. Others say they recently lost their jobs and do not know where else to turn.

“I hear the same story — hey I’ve never done this before. I need food. I need to make it a couple days. I’ve never done this before. My food stamps just ended. I have no idea what to do,” Newborn said.

The food bank typically saw between two and 10 new people a day. Since the beginning of this year, Newborn said, that number has climbed to about 30 to 40.

A customer picks up groceries at Community Space Food Bank. The food bank operates a community-choice pantry where customers can select the food they need.

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Hanna Kang

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The LA Local

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That demand is coming as the food bank is dealing with its own financial challenges. Community Space Food Bank is trying to raise $17,000 to cover its expenses for the next two months while also working to buy the building where it operates.

“Every food bank tries their best, but funding is not always there. I think the biggest issue with food banks is that they’re only open once a month, once a week,” Newborn said. “So us being here daily … people thank us everyday and that’s why I’m here everyday. And I can’t see this place go.”

The food bank has been open seven days a week for more than two years, including through a fire last year. It serves about 150 hot meals a day and about 100 families through its pantry, Newborn said.

The pantry operates on a suggested-donation model, and people who cannot afford to pay can still receive food. It is stocked with donations from local supermarkets, restaurants and farmers markets. Newborn said donors include Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s, Lassens, Lazy Acres and Mother’s Market.

A community fridge operated in partnership with LA Community Fridges sits outside the pantry and is available 24 hours a day.

“Our whole goal is to make sure no one goes hungry, no food goes to waste,” Newborn said. “There’s no ID, nothing required here, just show up for services.”

Keeping the food bank open has also come with a string of setbacks. Two vans were stolen, another broke down recently and three freezers have stopped working, Newborn said. A unit damaged in last year’s fire remains unusable, but the organization is still paying rent on it.

“That’s really kind of eaten into our ability to survive,” he said.

The building where the food bank operates is also for sale. Newborn wants to buy the property so the organization can stay there and have more stability.

Newborn and his wife, Hang, also want to expand the food bank’s freeze-drying operation. They started exploring the technology during the pandemic as a way to preserve surplus food that might otherwise be thrown away.

Hang Newborn said the idea grew out of two problems she saw while working in education: people going hungry and food being wasted.

“That was a way to help us solve two problems, which is there’s too many hungry people, and then there’s food going to landfills and polluting our ozone,” she said.

The food bank currently has eight freeze-drying machines and hopes to eventually have 30.

The idea also became personal for Gaines Newborn after his father died last year at 91. His father had difficulty chewing, so the family began freeze-drying foods that could be broken down and added to soups.

“We started freeze drying and realized you can crumble steak into a soup. You can crumble fruits, veggies, corn, carrots, things that are hard to eat, and he was able to maintain his nutrition,” Gaines Newborn said.

Hang Newborn said the long-term goal is to open a freeze-dry supermarket where people could buy food that can be prepared with hot water rather than relying on a stove or microwave.

“Freeze-drying would help us extend the window in which people could eat … people are given a finite time to eat, and most of the food is tethered to refrigeration,” she said.

Community Space Food Bank is located at 3615 Beverly Blvd. near Beverly Boulevard and Virgil Avenue. It’s open 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, and noon to 4 p.m. Sunday.

Donations can be made through the food bank’s website.

The post Local food bank under pressure to expand as cuts to food services fuels demand appeared first on LA Local.

A criminal investigation is underway Tuesday at the burned Lineage Logistics warehouse in Boyle Heights.

Agents with California’s Department of Toxic Substances Control Criminal Investigations Bureau, a law-enforcement unit that investigates potential violations of the state’s hazardous-waste laws, are serving a search warrant at the site. Surveillance video showed law enforcement arriving around 7:30 a.m., and some remained on scene as of midday Tuesday.

An agent with the department confirmed that the Office of Criminal Investigations is the lead agency but declined to comment further. Several investigators with badges from the LA County District Attorney’s office were also present. The office later confirmed it assisted DTSC in serving the search warrant and is supporting the department’s ongoing investigation.

In a statement, Lineage — which operates cold-storage facilities around the world — said that it works collaboratively with various regulatory agencies.

“To be clear, we do not store hazardous chemicals or products in this facility. We store food. Further, the facility’s ammonia refrigeration system was safely pumped out shortly after the fire began and before the fire reached the refrigeration system. The ammonia was subsequently removed from the site. The Los Angeles Fire Department reported no ammonia was detected during its response, and subsequent environmental monitoring has consistently shown results within normal levels for the neighborhood and no ammonia concentrations above health-based action levels. We have shared relevant testing and monitoring information on our website and with regulatory agencies and will continue to do so,” the statement said.

In the weeks after the fire, community testing as well as data from Lineage and the South Coast Air Quality Management District showed elevated levels of ammonia near the warehouse. Community members found the results alarming, though Lineage and regulators stressed the levels didn’t meet the threshold to take action to protect public health.

Last week, Eastside Padres held a press conference outside the warehouse,calling on the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office to open a criminal investigation of the warehouse fire after the Los Angeles Fire Department reported that the cause of the fire could not be determined.

A person who works at the facility said the operation started earlier Tuesday morning. Employees initially believed Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents were involved, but soon found they were not.

Anna Rivas works at Ciclon Pallets across the street from the Lineage parking lot where agents served the search warrant. A man driving a truck and a large trailer had to expertly back into her garage to pick up a load of pallets, dodging the law enforcement vehicles parked nearby.

The business’s surveillance cameras captured a police vehicle with lights and siren pulling up to the facility at about 7:30 a.m., with about 20 unmarked vehicles approaching soon after and entering the parking lot or stopping to block the entrance.

Rivas said the pallet company had to shut down for about a month and a half around the time of the fire, citing respiratory problems for workers and a loss of business.

“We thought we finally had our space back to do our work,” Rivas said. “But no, here we go again.”

She said the police did not question her or her colleagues, and she added she hopes the neighborhood gets the justice it deserves after months of disruption related to the fire.

In a statement, Councilmember Ysabel Jurado said she welcomed the investigation “as a positive step toward the transparency and answers Boyle Heights residents deserve.”

“This community has lived with the consequences of the Lineage warehouse fire for months. Residents deserve to know what happened, what risks remain, and who must be held accountable.”

“Investigators must be able to follow the evidence wherever it leads, and their findings should help give residents the information they need about their health, safety, and the future of this site. I will continue pushing for those answers, a safe and complete cleanup, and accountability for any violations uncovered. Boyle Heights should not be left to shoulder the consequences of this disaster.”

The office of Mayor Karen Bass also acknowledged the investigation, stating:

“The residents of Boyle Heights and East L.A. deserve environmental justice and corporate accountability. Mayor Bass has been working with many agencies to protect this community. In her emergency executive order, Mayor Bass called for the California Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) to investigate and pursue enforcement action at the Lineage warehouse.”

The fire at the cold storage warehouse broke out on June 17 and burned for eight days. The fire and cleanup of millions of pounds of rotting food caused a flood of issues for residents living in Boyle Heights, East LA and surrounding communities, including an infestation of flies and pests, nausea and headaches, higher utility bills and other health concerns.

The Los Angeles Fire Department could not determine the cause of the fire but said solar panels could not be ruled out as an ignition and fuel source.

Boyle Heights Beat reporter Laura Anaya-Morga contributed to this report.

Eva Marie Saint, the pale, willowy actor who won an Academy Award for her first movie, “On the Waterfront,” and starred opposite Cary Grant in the Alfred Hitchcock thriller “North by Northwest,” has died. She was 102.

Saint, whose acting work lasted well into her 90s, died at her home in Los Angeles on Tuesday, confirmed family representative Jeff Sanderson.

Saint had one of the most spectacular debuts in Hollywood history, as the love interest of Marlon Brando’s tormented Terry Malloy in “On the Waterfront,” and her first trip to the Academy Awards was memorable too. Pregnant with her first child, Saint accepted her Oscar from Frank Sinatra and smilingly murmured a unique winner’s speech: “I think I may have the baby right here.” (Her son, Darrell, was born two days later.)

The award for the 1954 classic made her an instant star, but she soon astonished Hollywood with a firm independence that would mark her career. She refused offers of studio contracts and declined chances to follow up on her great success, explaining that she was taking time off to become acquainted with her new son. (A daughter, Laurette, was born in 1958.)

A curated career

In her first decade in Hollywood, Saint appeared in a mere seven films. She declined such top-level productions as “The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit” with Gregory Peck, “Summer and Smoke” with Laurence Harvey and “The Rainmaker” with Burt Lancaster. She credited her husband, TV and stage director Jeffrey Hayden, with persuading her to star in Hitchcock’s “North by Northwest,” the classic 1959 thriller in which Saint plays a spy who seduces Grant, but ends up falling for him.

“I vividly remember him saying, ‘Honey, I think you should find a quiet spot. I’ll take care of the children and I want you to really think about this and reread this script,’” she told Vanity Fair in 2014. “He was so right. And that’s what husbands are for.”

Instead of being put off by her selectivity, studios continued offering her starring roles in such films as “Exodus” (with Newman), “Raintree County” (Elizabeth Taylor, Montgomery Clift) and “All Fall Down,” with Warren Beatty.

She turned more to television in the 1970s and enjoyed renewed popularity in the 1980s as the mother of Cybill Shepherd in the hit sitcom “Moonlighting” and as Tom Hanks’ mother in the film comedy “Nothing in Common.” She won an Emmy for the 1990 miniseries “People Like Us,” and had roles in such 21st century movies as “Because of Winn-Dixie,” “Superman Returns” and “Winter’s Tale,” adapted from Mark Helprin’s novel of the same name. In 2021, she played Marisa Tomei’s aunt in the brief audio play “The Bus Ride,” part of “The Pack Podcast.”

Saint was married to Hayden for 55 years, until his death in 2016.

That was her real name

When Saint emerged in the public consciousness, many believed her theatrical-sounding name must have been invented. She was born with it on July 4, 1924, in Newark, New Jersey. The family moved to Delmar, a small town near Albany, New York, where her father was a Goodrich Rubber Co. manager. Eva’s goal was to become a third-grade teacher like her mother, but at Bowling Green State University in Ohio she tried out for a play and won the leading role.

After graduation she lived with her parents in Flushing, Long Island, and began hunting for acting jobs in Manhattan. After a fruitless year, she landed a two-line role as a telephone operator on a radio drama and soon was working steadily on soap operas and nighttime dramas, appearing for two years as Claudia on “One Man’s Family.” Network television was booming in the early 1950s, and her looks and dramatic sense made her a favorite with casting people and producers.

She credited Lee Strasberg with helping her overcome shyness

A critical turn in Saint’s career came when she auditioned before Elia Kazan and was accepted into the Actors Studio, which shaped a generation of method-actor stars. She credited acting coach Lee Strasberg with helping her overcome her shyness.

“Lee Strasberg, when he got to know me a little bit, gave me a scene to do where I had to cry in front of my peers,” she told The Santa Barbara Independent in 2009. “I worried about it, I worked on it, I tried to use what I was learning at the studio. I finally did the scene, and I cried, and my peers were crying with me. It was just an incredible moment for me.”

Saint was rejected for the single female role in the play “Mister Roberts,” but was hired to understudy the actor chosen, Jocelyn Brando, Marlon’s sister. In six frustrating months Saint never got to substitute for Brando. She finally made it to Broadway in “A Trip to Bountiful,” which she had played on television.

Kazan invited her to try out for the female lead in “On the Waterfront” by improvising a scene with Brando. She was told to try to stop a young man from entering her apartment. She told the Los Angeles Times in 2001: “All I know is that Marlon got in the door and turned on the music. We started dancing. He flicked my skirt. Kazan saw the sparks fly, and that’s how I got the part.”

Thomas, a former Associated Press Hollywood correspondent who died in 2014, was the primary writer of this obituary.