Reuters
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The US authorities filed two lawsuits in opposition to Southern California Edison on Thursday, blaming the utility’s tools for sparking two wildfires, together with the Eaton Fire in January that broken National Forest System lands.
The lawsuits in opposition to the unit of Edison International EIX.N have been filed by the US Department of Justice in Los Angeles federal court docket.
They search greater than $77 million in damages for the utility’s alleged negligence, trespass by hearth and violations of California public security legal guidelines in inflicting the Eaton Fire and the September 2022 Fairview Fire.
“But for Edison’s negligence, these fires would not have started,” Bill Essayli, the appearing U.S. lawyer in Los Angeles, stated at a information convention. “Fire season is coming up again. We want Edison to change the way it does business.”
Southern California Edison, generally known as SCE, had no fast remark.
January wildfires in Southern California killed 31 people and destroyed or broken greater than 16,000 buildings.
Much of the injury got here from the Eaton Fire in Altadena, which killed 19 and burned greater than 10,000 buildings, and the Palisades Fire in Pacific Palisades.
In the primary lawsuit, the Justice Department blamed the January 7 Eaton Fire on defective SCE energy infrastructure or sparks from that infrastructure, inflicting the burning of practically 8,000 acres in Angeles National Forest in Los Angeles County.
The second lawsuit stated a sagging SCE energy line sparked the September 5, 2022, Fairview Fire, burning practically 14,000 acres in San Bernardino National Forest in Riverside County.
Both lawsuits stated SCE knew excessive winds might spark fires, however did not improve its tools to scale back the dangers.
Essayli is searching for damages of greater than $40 million for the Eaton Fire and $37 million for the Fairview Fire to cowl hearth suppression, rehabilitation, and different prices, and stated ratepayers shouldn’t be accountable.
A associated investigation into accountability for the Palisades Fire is ongoing, he added.
Property owners, shareholders, and Los Angeles County have additionally sued SCE or Edison over January’s wildfires.
Edison shares have been down 1.6% in afternoon buying and selling.