Eaton Fire, one of the LA wildfires, blamed on utility company, lawsuit alleges
A Southern California woman who lost her house in the wildfires devastating the area says a local utility company sparked the inferno that turned her longtime home into cinders, according to a lawsuit filed Monday.
Evangeline Iglesias says the utility, Southern California Edison, failed to shut down its power equipment despite strong warnings, resulting in the Eaton wildfire that consumed her Altadena house, according to the lawsuit in Los Angeles Superior Court.
The Eaton Fire east of downtown Los Angeles is one of three wildfires still burning in the area, according to CalFire. It has consumed over 14,000 acres and destroyed nearly 2,000 structures, the agency says. Its cause remains under investigation, according to the agency.
Authorities don’t know yet what caused the wildfires that killed at least 24 people, destroyed thousands of homes and businesses and burned up tens of thousands of acres of storied landscapes and communities. Dry vegetation, high winds and low humidity fueled the flames once they ignited.
More: Powerful winds threaten to erase firefighters' progress against LA fires: Live updates
Southern Californians forced to flee their homes have pointed the finger at politicians and others. Fire agencies have already said they are investigating links between the utility and the smaller but still burning Hurst Fire. Iglesias’ lawsuit is among the first of many that will blame utility companies and Southern California Edison in particular.
The lawsuit cites multiple eyewitness accounts and images that it claims appear to show a fire at the base of a transmission tower owned by the utility.
“They knew like everyone else did of the severe weather warnings, dry weather, high wind gusts, they had tools they could have used to mitigate the wildfire risk,” said Iglesias’ attorney Ali Moghaddas of the Edelson law firm. “They have choices when they face these moments and obviously they made the wrong one.”
A spokesperson for Southern California Edison said it could not comment directly on the lawsuit because it had not been served yet. But he said the company was aware of the filing and vigorously defended the company's safety practices.
“Our hearts remain with our communities during the devastating fires in Southern California and we remain committed to supporting them through this difficult time,” spokesperson Jeff Monford told USA TODAY.
The company provides electricity for around 5 million customers, according to Monford. A staff of meteorologists and fire scientists watch for potential wildfires and determine when the utility should shut down its equipment to avoid catastrophe, he said.
A map of utility shutoffs is available on the company’s website. Nearly 60,000 customers were without power due to the risk of wildfire as of 6:30 p.m. local time. Shutoffs are being considered for another 500,000 customers, according to the company.
The outage map includes a list of places to find resources, including lodging, and other tips on how to prepare for an outage.
What caused the Eaton Fire?
Iglesias’ lawsuit alleges the fire that consumed her house started at the base of a utility tower that the company had not shut off despite the precarious conditions.
A photo included in the lawsuit shows an island of flames rising around the base of the tower at 6:21 p.m., six minutes after the wildfire began. The lawsuit also includes accounts from witnesses who said the fire started under the power lines.
An electric grid monitoring company also recorded over 300 instances of faults - disturbances in the network caused by tree limbs touching live electrical wires or wires touching each other - in the hours leading up to the conflagration.
The faults indicate that power was still running through the lines despite an avalanche of warnings, including a National Weather Service Red Flag Warning forecasting winds up to 100 mph amid tinderbox conditions.
Monford reiterated that fire agencies are still investigating the cause of the fire.
Others blame Eaton fire on Edison
Iglesias isn’t the only saying the utility is behind her charred home.
Jeremy Gursey, another Los Angeles area resident who lost his house in the Eaton fire, also sued the utility for sparking the fire, according to court filings in the Los Angeles Superior Court.
The lawsuit also alleges the company failed to shut down its power lines ahead despite the dangerous conditions. It also includes photographs taken just after the 6:15 start time of the fire showing flames climbing a utility tower and threatening to ignite the surrounding area.
In another lawsuit, Michael Kreiner blames the utility for starting the fire that destroyed his property at his rental unit. The law firm, McNicholas & McNicholas did not immediately respond to requests for a copy of the lawsuit stamped by the court.
Shareholders burn Southern California Edison after LA fires erupt
The stock price of Edison International - the utility’s parent company - has taken a hit since the onset of the fires.
Its shares were down nearly 12% to $57.24 on Monday. They have declined by about 27% since the fires broke out last week.
On Monday morning, its CEO said in a TV interview the company was continuing to investigate the fires and had not identified any electrical anomalies from its equipment around the time the Eaton Fire broke out.
"It's pretty typical you see those when you have a spark coming from equipment," Edison International CEO Pedro Pizarro said during a CNBC interview on Monday morning when asked about the company's investigation into the Eaton Fire.
"There could be some other mechanism here. Unfortunately we have not been able to get close to the lines yet," he said.
Contributing: Thao Nguyen; Reuters.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Eaton fire, among LA's wildfires, blamed on utility company in lawsuit