10 Freeway fire: Inspector General faults Caltrans for neglecting safety inspections

Businesses struggle in wake of 10 freeway fire

The closure has caused negative impacts on small businesses in the area.

LOS ANGELES - Caltrans failed to address multiple safety concerns that may have led to the massive fire that destroyed a portion of the 10 Freeway in November, according to a new report from the California Office of Inspector General.

The fire broke out overnight on Nov. 11, 2023, underneath a bridge on the 10 Freeway near 14th and Lawrence streets in downtown Los Angeles. The destruction shut down a portion of the freeway for over a week. According to officials, the fire was the result of arson, but the flames were fueled by dozens of wooden palettes and flammable chemicals stored in the airspace under the bridge.

Those airspaces are leased out and overseen by Caltrans. In the first of several reports on the airspace program released Tuesday, the Inspector General said that Caltrans failed to follow established safety protocols surrounding this particular space, but stopped short of blaming the agency for the fire.

PREVIOUS COVERAGE: 10 Freeway fire: Suspected cause released

The report specifically mentioned Caltrans' failure to conduct the required annual inspections at the property, and that on the few times Caltrans did inspect the property, the agency didn't follow up on "numerous potential lease violations and other serious safety conditions."

According to the report, Caltrans inspected the property in just five of the 15 years between 2008 and 2023, and when they did, the report said, Caltrans did not document those inspections well.

A chart of inspections at the Caltrans-leased airspace property that caught fire underneath the 10 Freeway near 14th and Lawrence Streets. The chart spans from 2008 until Nov. 2023, when the property caught fire (Source: Office of the Inspector Gener

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One of the "potential lease violations," the report laid out, was that the tenant was allegedly subleasing the property without approval. In November, Gov. Gavin Newsom said the property near 14th and Lawrence had been leased by Anthony Nowaid, and the Calabasas-based Apex Development Inc. since 2008 — one of four that the company leased throughout the state. One of those subtenants told FOX 11 that not only did Caltrans know about his agreement with Nowaid, but he had shown Caltrans officials around the property on multiple occasions over the years.

Then, Newsom said the state was in litigation with Nowaid. Court records at the time showed Nowaid owed Caltrans more than $78,000 in back rent for the property, but Tuesday's report says that Caltrans failed to collect nearly $300,000 in unpaid rent for the property.

Because of these factors and others, the report said that Caltrans had many chances to void the lease over the years, but didn't.

How safe are rented spaces under freeways?

California Gov. Gavin Newsom says there are thousands of spaces under freeways across the state that the state leases out, similar to the one that caught fire under the 10 Freeway in downtown Los Angeles. Assemblyman Miguel Santiago said he wants the state to take another look the safety of such leases.

"Caltrans did not always follow its own procedures that were designed to protect its interests and keep the public safe," the report said. "As a result, Caltrans left the public more vulnerable than it otherwise would have been to the risk of fire. Caltrans could have — and should have — done more to make this property safer for the motoring public who traveled above it. Although we do not believe Caltrans was directly responsible for the November 2023 fire, it nevertheless could have played a larger role in its prevention."

Tuesday's report was the first of several from the Inspector General's Office. While this one focused specifically on the November fire, the next one is expected to look at the entire airspace lease program.

In a statement to FOX 11 Tuesday, Caltrans said that "Safety is Caltrans’ top priority, and the department takes the results of this audit report seriously. Since the fire under Interstate 10, Caltrans has implemented new oversight measures for Airspace properties at both the district and statewide levels and imposed stricter requirements for prospective tenants."

In addition, Caltrans said that it has "paused approving any new leases, subleases, and renewals of open storage properties…" as part of the program.

The full report can be read below: