Why those in L.A. whose homes were spared in wildfires could still face serious health risks [Video]

When Kate Gammon and her family fled their Santa Monica, Calif., home during the recent wildfires, she wasn’t sure what they would find when they returned. 

Though they weren’t under an evacuation order, Gammon, who has asthma, told CBC News that the air quality was quickly worsening and the fires were volatile, so they left on Jan. 8, when the fires were about six kilometres away. Four days later, she returned to find that the house had been spared from the flames, but was alarmed to see a layer of ash dotting everything in her yard.

“It’s just raining down on us at night,” she said. “They’re sort of like big, white, chunky pieces of ash.”

Researchers now say that because of the massive scale of these wildfires and the types of structures that are burning, people returning home when the initial fire hazard is over can still face health …