LOS ANGELES _ California fined the Los Angeles Police Department for rodent infestations and failure to train employees on the spread of a bacterial disease just two weeks before an employee at the downtown LAPD station contracted the bacteria that causes typhoid fever.
The California Department of Industrial Relations issued six violations and a $5,425 fine on May 14, but inspected the facility in November, records show.
Among the violations, according to the state, was that the LAPD did not train employees about how a dangerous bacterial disease is transmitted, its symptoms or measures for prevention. The department also did not have a program to exterminate and control rats, fleas, roaches, gnats, mosquitoes or grasshoppers in the building. Inspectors found all those in the facility, records show.
Other violations came from failing to clean "dust, dirt/suspect mold/fungus from the HVAC registers within a reasonable time"; for using extension cords instead of fixing wiring in the detectives' area; and for not keeping the parking garages, stairwells and records room clean, according to the citations.
It's not clear whether the conditions cited by the state were connected to the employee's illness. But the action by the state came months after a vermin infestation at City Hall caused health concerns. One city employee was diagnosed with typhus, a disease that can be spread by rodents. City Hall workers said they had seen fleas, rodent droppings, and plants eaten by vermin in the building.
The LAPD said it was reviewing the report and working to make the Central Division cleaner.
"The state's report is concerning and we are taking steps to ensure the men and women who work for the Los Angeles Police Department can come to work in a healthy environment," the department said in a statement Thursday.
"We are collaborating with the city's General Services Department, Personnel Division, Facilities Management Division, and Central Bureau facilities personnel to address the concerns of our employees and mitigate any possible exposure to diseases at all of our facilities. We are committed to creating and maintaining healthy communities in Los Angeles, including our own places of work."
The LAPD confirmed Wednesday evening that the employee who fell ill at the downtown LAPD station had contracted the bacteria that causes typhoid fever and was being treated for the condition. (The department earlier referred to the illness as typhus.) The LAPD confirmed that a second employee had a lower intestinal infection, but a specific diagnosis has not been determined.
An LAPD spokesman told the Los Angeles Times that neither of those employees was a patrol officer.
Typhoid fever is a life-threatening illness with symptoms that include stomach pain, diarrhea and loss of appetite. It is not commonly found in the United States but typically occurs in parts of the world where water is more likely to be contaminated with sewage, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
About 350 people are diagnosed with typhoid fever each year, most often after traveling outside the United States to countries such as India, Bangladesh and Pakistan, according to the CDC.
People with typhoid fever or who are carriers of Salmonella Typhi bacteria can spread the bacteria to other people.
The board of directors for the Los Angeles Police Protective League, the police labor union, said in a statement that officer safety must be considered and that "officers worry enough about being shot or injured policing the streets of Los Angeles."
Robert Harris, a union director, called the conditions "pretty disgusting" in the Central Division headquarters. The union and department leaders are equally concerned about the health and safety of employees, said Harris, who called on the city to hire outside experts to devise a plan to sanitize all police facilities.
LAPD employees, he said, should not have to worry about contracting diseases at work that could be carried home to their families.
"We're trying to be a proactive partner to clean up these toxic work sites," Harris said. "Let's clean it up before we have a massive outbreak."
Last October, health officials warned the public about a typhus outbreak after several people in downtown L.A. contracted the disease.
Typhus is distinct from typhoid fever and cannot be passed between people. Rather, typhus spreads when fleas become infected with bacteria known as Rickettsia typhi or Rickettsia felis. The illness reaches humans when fleas bite them or when infected flea feces are rubbed into cuts or scrapes in the skin, according to the CDC.
