Aliso Canyon

Why I became an activist after the Aliso Canyon Gas Blowout

Story by Jane Arakawa Fowler & Photo by Chris Torres

Icall myself an accidental activist.

My community of Porter Ranch and Granada Hills and I lived through the largest gas blowout in U.S. history that erupted on Oct. 23, 2015. I live just down the road from the Aliso Canyon Gas Storage Facility.

Over 109,000+ metric tons of methane plus a lethal cocktail of poly toxin pollutants, including cancer-causing benzene, mercaptan, heavy metals, volatile organic compounds and crude oil came spewing into my community and dri ed on the winds throughout the entire San Fernando Valley.

We’ve been ghting hard since 2015 to shut down the Aliso Canyon facility.

A er the blowout, I didn’t know what was happening with my body. My hair was falling out, my stomach was hard and distended, I was nauseous all the time, my body ached down to my bones, I had these weird skin rashes, heart palpitations, su ered frequent bloody noses, cough and a very sore throat. I couldn’t remember things and was always in a mental fog.

I was on my couch or in my bed most of the time. I would count how many steps it would take to get wherever I wanted to go in my home.

I ended up in therapy because I felt like I was going crazy.

One day as I was driving to my therapist’s o ce, I was listening to public radio in the car. ey were talking about the Aliso Canyon Gas Leak and I thought, “ at sounds so familiar.” I realized Aliso Canyon was the park just up the block from my home – the place I frequently walked my dog in. I called the gas company and they asked me how I was doing? I said I was horrible and my dog died.

So the gas company said I had to evacuate immediately!

My family and I evacuated for seven months but when I returned home, so did my symptoms and they haven’t gone away.

What does it feel like to live through a gas blowout?

In the beginning, before you know what is happening, you are questioning your body and your mind – everything hurts. en, when you nd out it’s a gas blowout, it doesn’t really compute.

Dizziness, nausea, nose bleeds and heart palpitations are gas related? Sometimes I still question myself and ask myself, “What’s wrong with you? Why can’t you leave the house?” I don’t garden anymore, don’t swim, don’t lie in the sun or even in the shade. I don’t take my co ee and breakfast outside or have a sandwich out on the deck. I’m nding my life becoming smaller and smaller.

You start having fears for the day. You curse yourself, tell yourself to get up, or to think or to not be so depressed. And sometimes through sheer force of will, you get yourself up but, mostly you don’t. You lose one day and before you know it, a week, a month has gone by and you are so far behind in everything you want to do in your life. I did ght for the problem to be xed! I talked to my councilman and local authorities. When that wasn’t fruitful, I went to many others and talked to neighborhood councils, senators and congress members. I went to Sacramento multiple times to talk to our elected o cials and helped organize many rallies and protests. I went to so many Air Quality Management District workshops, the Department of Public Health meetings, L.A. Board of Supervisors and California Public Utilities Commission hearings.

And then this Nov. 4, the California PUC wants to discuss actually increasing the amount of gas stored there!

In spite of the Los Angeles City Council and the LA County Board of Supervisors’ unanimous vote and the request of the Governor to expedite and close Aliso Canyon, nothing has happened!

When the Aliso Canyon blowout occurred, three companies immediately stepped up to help with battery storage and between that and the 31 mitigation measures, the Aliso Canyon facility was not used for almost two years. ere are even more possibilities for cutting down the need for methane gas with every new solar panel that is installed. Fighting for clean air is the only thing that got me out of the house and continues to do so today. I still smell gas many days and I still have symptoms, such as headaches and nausea. At 62 years of age, I am forced to leave my home of many years to seek someplace healthier to live. I can no longer go on living like this. I’ve said this for years but it is truly di cult to actually make this happen. I’m overwhelmed, nervous, scared to start anew. Where am I going to go? My one big desire is somewhere with trees — a lot of trees. Too Close for Comfort is a section where our audience and editors give first-hand accounts of issues that relate to them. If you have a story about navigating through pandemic that’s too close for comfort, please email us at toocloseforcomfort.

THIS IS AN EXCERPT OF AN ARTICLE FROM OUR DAILY ONLINE PUBLICATION, DAILY SUNDIAL.

PORTER RANCH RESIDENTS SUFFER CONSEQUENCES FROM SPIKE IN ALISO CANYON GAS EXTRACTION SIX YEARS AFTER THE BLOWOUT

Story and Photos by Chris Torres

After sneaking backstage while attending the 2019 California Democratic Convention in San Francisco, Porter Ranch resident and Aliso Canyon advocate Jane Fowler was able to approach Gov. Gavin Newsom about shutting down the Aliso Canyon gas storage facility.

“We have got to get that thing shut down,” said Newsom in a video recorded by the Food and Water Watch. “I’m working on it.”

Newsom also mentioned in the video that shutting down the gas facility was “at the top of our agenda,” while adding they “can’t just be flippant about it.”

Contrary to his statements, gas withdrawals from the Aliso Canyon gas storage facility are up by 4755% since Newsom was elected, according to data collected from the California Public Utilities Commission by the Food and Water Watch in 2021. Aliso Canyon was the site of the nation's largest-ever uncontrolled natural gas leak in 2015 and Porter Ranch residents are still experiencing health issues six years after the blowout.

“I feel like my life has been taken from me,” Fowler said. “When you’re not feeling well everyday or five days a week or two days a week and you don’t know which day it’s going to be, it affects your life.”

Fowler said she is selling her home, but at 62 years old, starting a new life somewhere else may end up being difficult.

“I know at 61 you can do anything, but I’m also a 62-year-old that has been physically, mentally, emotionally, psychologically and neurologically harmed,” Fowler said.

Fowler, along with many other Porter Ranch residents, reported having headaches, bloody noses, nausea and rashes. Residents also claim to experience a “brain fog,” a term used for certain symptoms that can affect your ability to think clearly. According to WebMD, you may feel confused, disoriented or find it hard to focus and put your thoughts into words.

“I couldn’t even make a grocery list,” said Porter Ranch resident and founding member of the Aliso Moms Alliance, Lori Aivazian. “I’d wake up in the morning and sit up in bed and have to think about how to put each foot down on the floor.”

Last month, Southern California Gas Company and its parent company, Sempra Energy, agreed to pay $1.8 billion to settle claims from more than 35,000 plaintiffs affected by the gas leak. A settlement has not yet been reached because it requires 97% of the plaintiffs to accept it in order for it to be finalized.

Matt Pakucko, the president of the nonprofit organization Save Porter Ranch, said each of the plaintiffs would receive around $28,000 after attorney fees and expenses.

“Does $28,000 cover [the medical expenses] for the rest of our lives being health monitored because of the ongoing issues?” Pakucko asked. “It doesn’t even come close.”