Amid a rare and prolonged torrent of wet weather last month, the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers Los Angeles District cleared 144 tons of litter and debris in a stretch of the San Gabriel Valley River that also included what officials were abandoned homeless encampments.
Crews cleared the area between March 6 and March 13, according to Army Corps officials, with much of the clearing around the former Puente Largo Railway Bridge, a 116-year-old bridge that was converted several years ago to a walk and bikeway spanning the riverbed.
The action came at the behest of local communities along the Azusa riverbed, who requested help in removing litter from abandoned homeless encampments on U. S. Army Corps-managed land.
It also came as an atmospheric river dumped record amounts of rain and snow before, during and immediately following the cleanup. The intense rain led to the rescue of eight people and eight dogs from the San Gabriel River on March 13 in Azusa. They had been swept away by fast-moving waters, according to the Los Angeles County Fire Department.
The 7-day cleanup spanned more than 68 acres, on which the Army Corps filled 18 40-cubic-yard dumpsters, totaling 144 tons of trash and debris, L.A. District project manager Trevor Snyder said in an announcement of the cleanup.
Much of the material collected included significant debris washed downstream from recent heavy rains. It included aerosol paint cans, propane tanks and gasoline cans. One item dragged out of the river was a soggy king-sized waterbed, officials said.
In announcing the cleanup, officials emphasized that any unhoused people living in the riverbed were given 72-hours notice before the work commenced. But they also cautioned that the lands for homeless encampments is prohibited by the agency’s regulations and Los Angeles County, “as it presents a health and safety hazard to homeless individuals, residents, the environment and wildlife.”
Representatives with the L.A. District’s Operations Division and the Corps’ L.A. District park rangers partnered with the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority, Azusa Police Department and L.A. County Animal Care and Control’s Major Case Unit to conduct a final safety inspection, ensuring the encampment was unoccupied – including pets – and to document its remnants, Army Corps officials said.
“While the focus is on removing floatable debris from the flood-risk management project and decreasing associated fire risks that these camps bring to our local communities, it is important to note that illegally domiciling in a river is very dangerous,” Snyder said.
“We strive to protect the lives and safety of those homeless during these cleanups,” he added.
The 58-mile San Gabriel River flows southward through Los Angeles and Orange counties – from the San Gabriel Mountains – before emptying into the Pacific Ocean between the cities of Long Beach and Seal Beach. The land along the river is maintained by the L.A. District for flood-risk management.
