“I can’t imagine coming back to this,” said Albert Kyi, a graduate student researcher at the University of Texas at Austin, briefly looking up from his laptop and out the van’s window. … The data the team was gathering was part of a newly launched study tracking the health impacts of the Los Angeles wildfires over the next decade. By traversing the 38,000 acres that encompass the two burn zones in Altadena and the Pacific Palisades along with the surrounding region, the researchers hope to fill gaps in the data on air, soil and water quality. Already, they have found cause for concern.

Other fire impact and analysis news:

• Spectrum 1 News: Video: Ocean water quality testing continues; scientists await results from fire pollutants after 1st flush​
• Aerotech News & Review: NASA uses new technology to understand California wildfires