Feds sue SoCal Edison for negligence in causing two massive wildfires

LOS ANGELES (CN) — The U.S. attorney in Los Angeles on Thursday sued Southern California Edison, claiming that the utility's equipment caused two massive wildfires, one in 2022 and one earlier this year, that destroyed tens of thousands of acres of national forest land and cost the government millions of dollars to suppress.

“The lawsuits filed today allege a troubling pattern of negligence resulting in death, destruction, and tens of millions of federal taxpayer dollars spent to clean up one utility company’s mistakes,” Acting United States Attorney Bill Essayli said in a statement. “We hope that today’s filings are the first step in causing the beginnings of a culture change at Southern California Edison, one that will make it a responsible, conscientious company that helps – not harms – our community."

The Eaton Fire ripped through eastern LA County in January, wiping out the community of Altadena and marking one of two unprecedented wildfires that month that devastated the region.

Prosecutors say the blaze was ignited by faulty power infrastructure owned and maintained by SoCal Edison.

In addition to causing deaths and widespread destruction in nearby foothill communities, the fire scorched 8,000 acres of the Los Angeles National Forest, damaging roads, trails, campgrounds and other facilities.

The U.S. seeks more than $40 million in damages from Edison for its fire suppression costs, rehabilitation of burned areas, and other environmental damages.

The utility is already defending a lawsuit by LA County over the damage caused by the Eaton Fire, as well as dozens of lawsuits by insurers and people who lost their homes in the blaze.

The Eaton Fire was the fifth deadliest and second most destructive fire in California history, destroying more than 9,000 buildings and burning over 14,000 acres. It broke out the same day as the Palisades Fire on the opposite side of LA County, which killed 12 people and leveled more than 6,800 buildings, including homes in the Pacific Palisades, one of the city’s wealthiest neighborhoods in the city.

The federal government also seeks to hold the utility company liable for the 2022 Fairview Fire, which burned 14,000 acres of the San Bernardino National Forest in Riverside County. Prosecutors are demanding SoCal Edison cover fire suppression costs and rehabilitation of national forest land.

The Fairview Fire was one of three large wildfires that swept through California after an intense heatwave in September 2022.

According to the government, the Fairview Fire started when a sagging Edison power line touched a Frontier Communications cable, sparking vegetation below.

The blaze began near the city of Hemet and spread into the San Bernardino National Forest, burning for five days before a tropical storm’s heavy rains drenched the region.

"SCE had non-delegable statutory and regulatory duties to properly inspect and maintain the areas through which its power and transmission lines passed to ensure that they were safe and clear from dangerous conditions," a federal prosecutor said in the complaint

"The ignition of the Fairview Fire by SCE’s power and transmission lines is prima facie evidence of SCE’s negligence in the maintenance, operation, or use of the power and transmission lines," they added.

The United States wants to recover about $37 million in damages incurred by the Forest Service because of the Fairview Fire, including about $20 million in fire suppression costs.

Representatives of Southern California Edison didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.

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