A medical warehouse in Tracy, California, was burning out of control on Thursday, filling the air with black smoke contaminated by medical supplies and building materials.
The 1 million-square-foot (93,000-square-meter) warehouse was part of a Medline Industries distribution center campus and played a key role in distributing supplies such as latex gloves, masks, and surgical instruments during the covid-19 pandemic, the Associated Press reports. An unknown cause ignited the facility just before 1 p.m. on Thursday, and it quickly became engulfed in flames, with photos and videos showing an enormous plume of smoke rising into the air.
Reports indicate that the facility has been destroyed, and the Tracy Police Department told Gizmodo that the fire was still active as of 9 a.m. ET on Friday. Gizmodo reached out to the South San Joaquin County Fire Authority for comment but did not receive a response by the time of publication. The Tracy Police Department could not provide an update on the fire’s containment or the air quality hazard to nearby communities, but local health officials have issued an air alert and health caution statement.
BREAKING: The entire Med Line warehouse in Tracy is on fire with embers spreading smaller fires in the grass and trees throughout the area near houses. Multiple big rigs and employees’ cars in the parking lot are also on fire. 🔥 #tracy #california 🎥 @TracyMountainR pic.twitter.com/JiYL0rmoxX
— 209 Times (@209TimesCA) June 11, 2026
An expanding air quality threat
According to the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District, smoke from the warehouse fire was drifting over San Joaquin and Stanislaus counties on Thursday. The agency expected winds over the fire to send smoke inland and southward along the western and central portions of the San Joaquin Valley and fumigate down toward the ground last night, potentially threatening residents of Modesto, Merced, Fresno, and Kings counties.
On Friday, the agency expects smoke to keep flowing southward over southern portions of the Valley, reaching Kern County by early morning or midday.
California is quite familiar with the dangers of wildfire smoke, but smoke from a large medical warehouse fire is particularly dangerous because it contains significant quantities of hazardous chemicals from medical supplies and building materials.
“Among the chemicals that were consumed in the Medline fire were an assortment of respiratory irritants, toxic gases, carcinogens and at least one neurotoxin,” San Joaquin County Public Health Officer Maggie Park told the Stockton Record. “If anyone in the vicinity of the smoke plumes inhaled the smoke and is experiencing sudden onset respiratory problems, headaches, dizziness, nausea or throat irritation, they should report to their nearest emergency department for further evaluation and treatment.”
A massive medical warehouse is burning in Tracy, California, and putting up a gnarly cloud of toxic smoke. This smoke is going to settle into the Valley overnight, and is also reaching into the Santa Clara Valley near Morgan Hill. If you live in an area which is being impacted by… pic.twitter.com/b4VgAfCmz3
— Zeke Lunder ~ The Lookout (@wildland_zko) June 11, 2026
A dangerous fire season ahead
Fire Chief Randall Bradley of the South San Joaquin County Fire Authority told the Associated Press that efforts to extinguish the fire on Thursday were hindered by a broken sprinkler system and low water pressure in hydrants at the warehouse, adding that low humidity, high winds, and high temperatures fanned the flames.
“It was a little bit of a perfect storm for this fire evolving quickly,” he said.
California’s wildfire season is off to an early, overactive start. While the fire at the Medline warehouse appears to have started at or inside the building, wildfires have been known to threaten industrial sites across the state. Just last month, firefighters were scrambling to contain the Sandy Fire as it encroached on a defunct nuclear reactor and rocket-testing site. Fortunately, they were successful. If the blaze had spread to the contaminated area, it would have released hazardous chemicals and radioactive materials into the air.
As summer heats up, protecting industrial areas from the growing threat of wildfire will be critical to California’s air quality. The Medline warehouse fire will illustrate how even just one large facility can impact air quality and public health when burned.
