Transitional Housing Lost in Tiny Houses Uproar pg. 4 Street Art Exhibit on Police Shooting Leaves Long Beach Museum of Art on Edge pg. 11 Sweet Dixie Kitchen—A Destination Spot for Comfort Food pg. 12
Tianjin Tragedy Shakes Up Local Concerns
By Terelle Jerricks, Managing Editor
Frightening Parallels with Threat Posed by Rancho Storage Tanks By Paul Rosenberg, Senior Editor
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The Local Publication You Actually Read
n Aug. 5, after months of delay, a group of citizens concerned about the public safety threat posed by Rancho LPG met with Port of Los Angeles Executive Director Gene Seroka and staff members. “Mr. Seroka expressed his abiding commitment to the safety and security of the port complex, as well as the surrounding communities,” said port spokesman Phillip Sanfield. “The group had an opportunity to share its views and concerns regarding Rancho LPG. Port senior staff is reviewing the information provided and will follow up in writing with the group.” Rancho LPG is a liquefied petroleum storage facility located near the confluence of Gaffey Street and the 110 Freeway. Local activists Janet Gunter, Noel Weiss and Adrian Martinez and other participants expressed cautious optimism in the immediate aftermath of the meeting. But a deadly explosion in the Chinese port city of Tianjin, just one week later, Aug. 12, renewed a looming sense of urgency and impending threat. “Why is 25 million gallons of highly explosive butane and propane gases being stored within 1,000 feet (333 yards) of residences, schools, shops and public highway?” Gunter asked in an email linking to a story about the Chinese blast. “Why is it allowed to sit on the inner harbor, threatening the destruction of both ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach…and all of those within a 3-mile blast radius?” Although entirely different explosive agents were involved, there were still strong parallels between the Tianjin blast—with a death toll now at 114, including 39 firefighters—and a possible disaster scenario at Rancho LPG. “China on Friday defended firefighters who initially hosed water on a blaze in a warehouse storing volatile chemicals, a response foreign experts said could have contributed to two huge blasts that killed 56 people,” Reuters reported. “Chemical safety experts said calcium carbide reacts with water to create acetylene, a highly explosive gas. An explosion could be caused if firefighters sprayed the calcium carbide with water, they said.” “Calcium carbide CaC2 and water react to make acetylene, C2H2, which is the material in welding torches,” said retired oil industry consultant Connie Rutter. “So, whatever first caused an explosion, when firemen trained water on more calcium carbide, they increased the explosion, rather than preventing it.”
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[See Corita, page 6]
August 20 - September 2, 2015
eginning Sept. 3, Marymount California University, in collaboration with the Corita Art Center and fINdings Art Center, will present Be the Change: The Corita Experience, an exhibition at the Klaus Center in San Pedro that surveys the work of artist, activist and educator Sister Corita Kent. More than 60 pieces of Sister Corita’s vibrant Pop Art serigraphs will be featured in the show, reflecting her passion for tearing down the walls that separate people, confronting injustice and promoting peace. Sister Corita’s work has been traveling around the world since about 2011, but “now is the time” for its message to really transmit, said Annette Ciketic, director of fINDings. I wanted a firsthand understanding of Sister Corita from those who knew her and had a relationship with her. I have found that many lionized heroes of the left, after many decades, tend to get diced, sliced, repackaged and then mass-distributed in a form palatable enough that even old, ideological foes can stomach and regurgitated at their convenience. That is, if they weren’t forgotten. I suspected that was part of the reason Sister Corita’s work has been touring around the world for the past few years.
[See Blast, page 10]
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