LOS ANGELES (AP) — Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass declared an emergency Saturday to ensure the city gets the resources it needs to fight a large warehouse fire that has sent large plumes of smoke into the air.
“The city and county have opened spaces for families seeking relief from the smoke, and we will continue working around the clock and doing everything possible to put this fire out completely," Bass said in a news release announcing the emergency declaration.
The fire at a privately owned cold-storage warehouse in the city's Boyle Heights neighborhood started Wednesday, prompting shelter-in-place orders in the area because of the risk of hazardous air. Residents were told to close all windows, doors and vents, turn off air conditioning and bring people and pets to an inside room.
Los Angeles Fire Department Chief Jaime Moore said in a news conference that they have taken care of the hazardous materials portion of the blaze and now they are working on the biohazard challenges.
“We have 85 million pounds of frozen food inside of this facility and the way the building has been laid out, it’s very difficult for us to get in there because there’s zero visibility inside,” Moore said. “Our firefighters are not able to just go in there and start moving pallets.”
The mayor's declaration asks for recovery help under the California Disaster Assistance Act. She also asked the state to expedite access to resources and other relief programs.
Bass said their chief concern is for the health and safety of the people impacted by the fire, so they are trying to secure the help needed to move the toxic materials away from the area and dispose of them in a way that will avert a major environmental disaster.
“So this is about prevention,” she said. “This is about protecting your public health.”
Water is dropped by helicopter at a warehouse fire in the Boyle Heights section of Los Angeles on Wednesday, June 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
Fire crews stage outside a warehouse in the Boyle Heights section of Los Angeles on Wednesday, June 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
The sky is filled with smoke from a warehouse fire in Los Angeles on Wednesday, June 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
NEW DELHI (AP) — Supporters of India’s viral Cockroach Janta Party banged steel plates with spoons in a protest Saturday to demand the resignation of the education minister over allegations of examination irregularities and repeated paper leaks.
The protest near Parliament in New Delhi by hundreds of students and young supporters of the nascent movement added to the pressure on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government while also seeking wider support among Indians.
Authorities deployed heavy security and police used cameras and drones to monitor the protest.
Some carried placards and others banged plates, their noise cutting through the crowd protesting and demanding the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.
The banging of plates appeared to satirize Modi’s call for Indians to step onto balconies and rooftops and bang utensils in solidarity with front-line health workers during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.
CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke, a political communications strategist and Boston University student, urged supporters on social media to bring plates and spoons on Saturday. “There is a virus called Dharmendra Pradhan that has to be removed,” he told the crowd, adding that the CJP was open to talks with the government if Pradhan stepped down.
"This is just the beginning. If Dharmendra Pradhan doesn’t resign or if no action is taken regarding this issue, this protest will not end here,” said a CJP supporter, Deepak Kumar.
The exam paper for a nationwide medical program was leaked last month through social media app Telegram. Authorities subsequently postponed the exam and also temporarily banned Telegram in India. The exam is scheduled to be held on Sunday. The government says the leak is under investigation.
“We study in poverty, live in poverty for 24 hours everyday, for years at length, and after that our (exam) papers get leaked. Will I not get angry at this?” said student Vicky Kumar.
The movement emerged in May, after Supreme Court Judge Surya Kant’s remarks comparing some unemployed youth to “cockroaches” triggered outrage. Supporters embraced the term as a symbol of resilience, helping the group amass more than 22 million followers on Instagram.
The movement’s message has since expanded to include concerns over unemployment, rising living costs and government accountability.
The CJP mixes self-deprecating humor with political criticism. Supporters jokingly call themselves unemployed and chronically online, while videos and memes mocking unemployment, corruption and political dysfunction have attracted millions of views. Many parody CJP accounts have also adopted the cockroach as a satirical political symbol.
Supporters of the Cockroach Janta Party shout slogans during a protest demanding the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over alleged examination irregularities and repeated paper leaks, in New Delhi, India, Saturday, June 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup)
An Indian paramilitary soldier walks past a few remaining Cockroach Janta Party protesters after authorities move to disperse a demonstration demanding the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over alleged examination irregularities and repeated paper leaks in New Delhi, India, Saturday, June 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup)
Abhijeet Dipke, founder of the Cockroach Janta Party furls Indian flag during a protest demanding the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over alleged examination irregularities and repeated paper leaks in New Delhi, India, Saturday, June 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup)
Supporters of the Cockroach Janta Party shout slogans during a protest demanding the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over alleged examination irregularities and repeated paper leaks, in New Delhi, India, Saturday, June 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup)
Abhijeet Dipke, founder of the Cockroach Janta Party speaks during a protest demanding the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over alleged examination irregularities and repeated paper leaks, in New Delhi, India, Saturday, June 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup)
Abhijeet Dipke, center, founder of the Cockroach Janta Party addresses supporters during a protest demanding the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over alleged examination irregularities and repeated paper leaks, in New Delhi, India, Saturday, June 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup)
Abhijeet Dipke, founder of the Cockroach Janta Party addresses supporters during a protest demanding the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over alleged examination irregularities and repeated paper leaks in New Delhi, India, Saturday, June 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup)
Indian security personnel stand guard during a protest demanding the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over alleged examination irregularities and repeated paper leaks, in New Delhi, India, Saturday, June 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup)
Supporters of the Cockroach Janta Party wear masks during a protest demonstration demanded the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over alleged examination irregularities and repeated paper leaks in New Delhi, India, Saturday, June 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup)
Abhijeet Dipke, center, founder of the Cockroach Janta Party gestures as he holds the photograph of Mahatma Gandhi and Bhim Rao Ambedkar during a protest demanding the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over alleged examination irregularities and repeated paper leaks in New Delhi, India, Saturday, June 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup)
