Thomas Fire. Photo credit: Ventura County Fire Department.
Ranchers in Ventura County who lost cattle and property during the devastating Thomas Fire filed a lawsuit this week against Southern California Edison, claiming the utility’s outdated equipment and lagging fire mitigation efforts were to blame for what became the largest blaze in modern state history.
“The Thomas Fire was the inevitable byproduct of SCE’s willful and conscious disregard of public safety. SCE, although mandated to do so, failed to identify, inspect, manage and/or control vegetation growth near its power lines and/or other electrical equipment. This created a foreseeable danger of trees and/or other vegetation coming into contact with SCE’s power lines and/or other electrical equipment and causing electrical problems, including ignition of fires,” the complaints state.
The lawsuit, filed on behalf of two ranchers, is the latest in a series of suits lodged against the utility provider.
According to The Ventura County Star newspaper, a spokesman for Edison said the company would not comment until the official cause of the blaze has been released.
“The Thomas fire obviously has had an impact of many individuals, but the origin and cause of the fire continue to be under investigation and no report has yet been issued,” a spokesman said in a statement, as reported by the newspaper. “This and other lawsuits are not based on findings related to an investigation. Therefore, it would be premature for SCE to comment on the origin or cause of the recent wildfires.”
The Thomas Fire burned 281,893 acres, making it the largest wildfire in recent California history. It destroyed 1,063 structures, damaged 280 more, and set in motion the factors that led to a series of flash-floods and landslides that killed 21 residents.
A report on the official cause may still be several weeks away.
Here are the complaints. Among the plaintiffs are Richard and Bonnie Atmore, the trustees of the Rancho #Ventura Conservation Trust. That’s the ranch land I’m on now. pic.twitter.com/wpHAg1iXJP
— Megan Diskin (@megandiskin) March 15, 2018
