As crews continued to clean up the so-called “trash house” in the Fairfax District on Thursday, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass expressed concern for the 70-year-old homeowner.
“I'm horrified to think of what is happening inside that house,” she said during a press conference in front of the home. “Obviously, we are just dealing with outside, but we did have the Department of Mental Health here yesterday and I certainly hope they will be back today because we need to make sure that he is taken care of as well. This is not a normal situation.”
Mayor Bass added that she would be talking with county officials on how to get care for the man.
“We need to take care of him,” she said. “I heard that he does have family, and so I'm going to be talking to the county officials and figure out how we get care for him because again, we can't just view this as a situation of an individual that compiled trash.”
The homeowner’s sister is also speaking out. She told KNX News’ Margaret Carrero her brother is autistic and that she gave him the house years ago when she was diagnosed with cancer.
“He has a way of hiding things and I'm shocked that he let… he put it all in the front yard because that’s…you just can't even walk around there,” she said.
She added that despite telling her brother to clean up the yard, he wouldn’t listen to her. She said he gets angry and yells at her and she refuses to take that.
Want to get caught up on what's happening in SoCal every weekday afternoon? Click to follow The L.A. Local wherever you get podcasts.
“My brother won't allow me to do anything for him. He hates me,” she said.
She said the city stepping in to clean it out has been “a good thing.”
Mayor Bass’ Office said that seven tons of waste was removed from the N. Martel Ave. property by city crews on Wednesday. They will continue to remove trash throughout the remainder of Thursday.
Follow KNX News 97.1 FM
Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | TikTok
