Edison Utility Sued Over Role of Equipment in Los Angeles Fire

Edison International Inc.’s southern California utility was hit with a lawsuit blaming the energy provider’s equipment for igniting one of the wildfires still raging in the second-largest US metropolis.

The lawsuit is on behalf of a group of homeowners, renters, business owners and others with properties destroyed by the Eaton Fire in the Pasadena area. The suit alleges a Southern California Edison pole holding power lines was the cause of the blaze that leveled the community of Altadena.

The suit Monday is believed to be the first of what’s expected to be thousands of legal claims tied to the fire, which is only partially contained. The complaint appeared on the website of Los Angeles Superior Court Monday, but hasn’t yet been fully processed by the court.

Edison said it was looking into the matter and couldn’t immediately comment on the suit.

The suit claims Edison didn’t properly maintain its electrical infrastructure, presenting “an inherent risk and danger of fire to private property” and that the company’s vegetation management wasn’t compliant with local rules. It seeks damages for property losses caused by the raging fires in and around the Eaton Canyon area.

“Edison knew about the significant risk of wildfires caused by its aging and overloaded utility towers and power poles before the Eaton Fire began,” according to the complaint.

As of early Monday, the Eaton fire was 27% contained but had consumed more than 14,000 acres, destroyed or damaged thousands of structures and killed at least 16 people.

Top photo: Utility workers fix an electricity pole in the aftermath of the Eaton Fire in Altadena, California, on Jan. 10.