The U.S. government has taken Southern California Edison to court, asking a federal judge to make the utility pay for the costs of fighting two major wildfires last year. These fires, which happened in Los Angeles County, are believed to have started because of issues with the company’s power lines.
The lawsuits were filed on Thursday in Los Angeles. One case deals with the Eaton Fire in January, a devastating blaze that destroyed thousands of homes and tragically killed 19 people. The other lawsuit relates to the Fairview Fire, which broke out in September 2022 to the east of Los Angeles and took the lives of two people. The government blames Southern California Edison for not properly looking after its power lines and equipment, which they say led to the fires.
Southern California Edison, part of Edison International, has already faced many lawsuits tied to the Eaton Fire. The fire severely damaged the Altadena neighborhood, and officials are still investigating how exactly it started. Meanwhile, the Fairview Fire burned around 28,000 acres, according to California’s fire agency, CalFire.
In its legal filing, the government claimed that the Eaton Fire was sparked by faulty power lines owned by Southern California Edison. The utility was aware of the risks caused by high winds near their equipment but did not take sufficient steps to prevent a fire. In fact, the company had issued a statement just one day before the fire, saying it was preparing for extreme wind conditions and possible power outages.
Southern California Edison operates three major power lines in the area where the Eaton Fire began. The utility also acknowledged there was a fault detected in one of those lines around the time the fire started.
The government is seeking over $40 million to cover firefighting costs and restoration work on more than 8,000 acres of National Forest land damaged by the Eaton Fire. They also want the company to pay for fighting the Fairview Fire and repairing the 14,000 acres it burned.
At the same time as the Eaton Fire, another large fire broke out in Pacific Palisades, burning more than 20,000 acres in similarly strong winds.
These cases are currently before the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, under case numbers 25-cv-8356 and 25-cv-8357.
Southern California Edison has yet to comment on the lawsuits or the accusations against it. This legal action highlights ongoing challenges utilities face as they try to prevent wildfires in an era of worsening weather conditions caused by climate change.