Leticia Rinker was walking near her home in Stanton on May 22 when a neighbor called with a question: Can’t you hear the helicopters?
Rinker, 71, had been wearing AirPods, grooving to oldies. Above, helicopter crews were using loudspeakers to tell residents to flee as an overheated tank at GKN Aerospace in Garden Grove threatened to explode or leak thousands of gallons of a toxic chemical.
You’re reading the Essential California newsletter
Sign up to start every day with California’s most important stories.
By continuing, you agree to our Terms of Service, which include arbitration and a class action waiver. You agree that we and our third-party vendors may collect and use your information, including through cookies, pixels and similar technologies, for the purposes set forth in our Privacy Policy such as personalizing your experience and ads.
She rushed home, grabbed her two pugs and her daughter’s two cats and headed for an evacuation center, frustrated and confused.
A week later, all evacuation orders have been lifted for the 50,000 residents of six Orange County cities displaced by the crisis. Multiple lawsuits have been filed against the aerospace manufacturing company, whose leaders have apologized for the disruption and vowed to support those affected. Residents and elected officials have demanded accountability.
Rinker, whose last few years have been filled with loss, is just glad to be home.
The tank failure
Orange County Fire Authority Interim Chief TJ McGovern has said the crisis likely was caused by the failure of a cooling system designed to regulate the temperature of chemical tanks at the site.
This may have led to a buildup of heat in a pressurized tank filled with 7,000 gallons of methyl methacrylate, a highly flammable liquid monomer used to manufacture plastics. Evaluations over the Memorial Day weekend found the tank had a crack that had reduced pressure, eliminating the possibility of a catastrophic blast.
Firefighters sprayed more than 9 million gallons of water on the tank to cool and stabilize the chemical.
A headache and an evacuation
Rinker has lived in Stanton, 3.5 miles north of the GKN Aerospace facility, for three decades. She didn’t know what was stored in the tanks.
It’s a common story. Industrial sites are embedded in communities across Southern California, often to the surprise of their neighbors.
At home on Thursday, May 21, Rinker had her windows open and kept thinking she was smelling gas.
She had a headache. And smelled the scent outside Friday morning during her walk.
That afternoon, she parked outside the evacuation center at the Garden Grove Sports & Recreation Center with the pugs, Lulu and Daisy, and cats, Cedric and Elvis. She didn’t want to waste expensive gas and spent hours sitting in her car with the animals, stressing because she forgot pet food and had no idea how long she would be gone.
After learning that the park and recreation center would not have overnight accommodations, she tried to get to a Red Cross shelter — only to get lost because she was so flustered and exhausted.
“I gave up and just pulled over on the street,” Rinker said. She shared her cellphone location with her daughter and son-in-law, who had just returned to California after an out-of-state vacation. They found her around midnight.
Rinker can’t imagine what it would have been like to leave her house permanently, especially after the 2024 she had. That spring, she broke her hip. Her husband died that summer, a few days before her 70th birthday and a few months before their 30th wedding anniversary. The autumn marked 10 years since her daughter died.
Her neighbors’ kindness helped her through her grief.
Sleepy pugs and a return
Rinker’s family stayed in a Huntington Beach hotel room with one bed. Rinker said she “didn’t want anyone to fuss over me” and insisted on taking the tiny couch, with the pugs sleeping on her chest. At one point, she tried to stretch out on the floor. No one slept much.
On Saturday, the family found roads that weren’t blocked off and got back to their house to get extra clothes and pet supplies.
“We felt comfortable, so we just stayed,” Rinker said.
They packed go-bags in case they needed to flee again, watched the news, and delighted when neighbors returned.
On Thursday, Rinker said she felt safe being home and that she trusted investigators to figure out what went wrong.
“Life is life,” she said. “We don’t know what to expect.”
Today’s top stories 
From left: Steve Hilton at the California Republican Convention in San Diego; Tom Steyer campaigning in downtown Santa Ana; and former Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra in San Diego.
(Los Angeles Times)
California governor’s raceOn the cusp of California’s gubernatorial primary, Xavier Becerra leads a volatile race — according to a poll released Friday — though early mail ballots show Republican Steve Hilton outpacing Becerra and Democrat Tom Steyer.Democrats’ unusually slow ballot returns hint at either strategic last-minute voting or voter fatigue, despite record-breaking campaign spending.How private money helps bankroll the LAPDLike other big-city police forces, the LAPD has long turned to wealthy boosters to supplement its multibillion-dollar annual budget, which mainly goes toward salaries and other payroll costs. The influx of private money has prompted concerns from some within the LAPD, and from experts who say similar contributions are being made to police departments around the country.What else is going onCommentary and opinionsThe Republican assault on Obamacare has created a healthcare bloodbath, with worse yet to come, argues columnist Michael Hiltzik.Marilyn Monroe left behind a now-100-year-old mystery we’re still trying to unravel, writes culture critic Mary McNamara.This morning’s must-readAnother must-readFor your downtime 
A large swath of the L.A. County coastline is visible from the East Topanga Fire Road.
(Jaclyn Cosgrove / Los Angeles Times)
Going outStaying inA question for you: Memorial Day kicked off the unofficial start of summer. What’s your favorite summer beach getaway?
Leigh says, “Corona del Mar in the early 1950s, when everything east of the sleepy coast was the Irvine Ranch. A full day at Little Corona Beach with the tide pools, my sisters, and Dad, starting with breakfast at the Snack Shop. Or a day at Balboa with its sandy sliver of bayside beach adjacent to the Fun Zone. Or maybe the big beach at Laguna after waving to The Greeter, with an hour during the late afternoon to browse the Pottery Shack with Mom. I still get away to those unmatched days in my mind’s eye.”
Email us at essentialcalifornia@latimes.com, and your response might appear in the newsletter this week.
And finally … your photo of the day 
Hailey Contreras, 18, of Adelanto has three commencement ceremonies to attend.
(Gary Coronado/For The Times)
Today’s great photo is from former Times photographer Gary Coronado. Pictured is 18-year-old Hailey Contreras, who is graduating from high school and two local colleges.
Have a great day, from the Essential California team
Hailey Branson-Potts, staff writer
Hugo Martín, assistant editor, fast break desk
Kevinisha Walker, multiplatform editor
Andrew Campa, weekend writer
Karim Doumar, head of newsletters
How can we make this newsletter more useful? Send comments to essentialcalifornia@latimes.com. Check our top stories, topics and the latest articles on latimes.com.