Suzanne Potter, producer/reporter, California News Service, a bureau of Public News Service.
Concerned parents are pushing the authorities to help parks and daycares remove sand from sandboxes contaminated with ash after the Los Angeles fires last January.
The City of Pasadena sent crews to remove the top two inches of sand from sandboxes in local parks. Los Angeles County recommended the same thing but has not funded the remediation so far.
Juana Sanchez, a mother of two toddlers in Eagle Rock, said she has been calling authorities, to little avail.
“I called my local park to hear what steps were taken to remediate ash,” Sanchez explained. “I was told, well, our park has been raking the sand daily and power washing all durable surfaces. That just effectively disturbs ash so that it’s no longer visible.”
When asked about sand removal, the Los Angeles County Department of Health said no one was available for an interview. Sen. Sasha Perez, D-Los Angeles, who represents areas affected by the Eaton fire, has called for more soil testing.
Sanchez pointed out small daycares that survived the fire may not be able to afford to clean up their sandboxes and play yards.
“Can someone quarterback this? Can someone show leadership on this issue?” Sanchez asked. “My concern is that right now, it’s like a political hot potato that nobody wants to touch and that we’d rather pretend doesn’t exist.”
Cristina Alvarado, executive director of the Child Care Alliance of Los Angeles, said many small daycares serving low-income communities of color are facing big bills in their quest to reopen safely.
“In terms of cleaning, there are some grants available,” Alvarado noted. “We are also going to be giving some stipends, you know, to child care providers, as much as we were able to obtain from donors. I think that there, there are efforts to help them clean. I know that we’ve been talking to some of the big toy manufacturers to see if they can donate sand for the sandboxes.”
The Child Care Alliance has also distributed buckets of cleaning supplies and air purifiers to daycares downwind of the fire zone.
