After fatal fires in LA: Lawsuit against electricity suppliers

The Los Angeles district has After the devastating surface fires in Southern California the local electricity supplier sues for compensation. The complaint against Southern California Edison (SCE), submitted on Wednesday, refers to the destruction by the « Eaton » fire near Pasadena and Altadena. The major fire, which burned down an area of ​​more than 56 square kilometers in January, demanded 17 lives and destroyed around 9,400 buildings.

The plaintiffs claim that the fire was caused by the equipment of SCE. They refer to eyewitnesses, photos and videos of surveillance cameras that would indicate defective high -voltage lines. The district demands compensation of « hundreds of million dollars », which would have to be caused to remedy the fire damage.

Fires raged for weeks

The « Palisades » fire on the western edge of Los Angeles and the « Eaton » fire near Pasadena and Altadena have said to be more than 16,200 buildings. The number of confirmed deaths is 29. The fire brigade was in large -scale for weeks to contain the fires, which were repeatedly felt by strong winds.

Previous complaints against electricity suppliers

In northern California, energy suppliers there had been sued according to huge surface fires. The company PG & E guilty for a devastating forest fire with over 80 deaths in the village of Paradise. More than 13,000 houses burned down there in November 2018. The fire was attributed to defective power lines. Strong wind contributed to spreading the flames quickly. The group had to pay punishments and compensation in billions of bills. In extreme weather conditions with an increased risk of fire, the electricity is now more often switched off.