City of LA, power utility sued over 2017 fire

The city of Los Angeles and its power utility knew about poorly maintained power lines that allegedly caused the burning of 15,000 acres of land in last winter's "Creek Fire" but failed to fix them, according to a recently-filed negligence lawsuit.

McNicholas & McNicholas LLP, Frantz Law Group, Bridgford, Gleason & Artinian and Becker Law Group named the Los Angeles Department of Water & Power and the city as defendants. The suit is separate from the coordinated "Thomas Fire" cases in Los Angeles County.

The Creek Fire blaze, which originated in a canyon near the city of Sylmar, was one of many induced by the December 2017 Santa Ana winds, creating a ring of fire around Los Angeles.

The suit contends winds caused poorly maintained, overly slacked power lines to slap together and shoot hot metal into dry vegetation below. That led to a 10-day blaze that destroyed 115 homes, according to the lawsuit filed last week in Los Angeles County Superior Court.

The city said it is reviewing the lawsuit and declined comment.

As of last year, half of the utility's 320,000 power poles were more than 50 years old, contributing to weakened infrastructure, according to the lawsuit.

Had the city inspected its infrastructure and heeded warnings by the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection and the National Weather Service, the incident could have been avoided, the lawsuit states.

"Instead, defendant LADWP knowingly or negligently fell below those standards by ignoring a well-known risk, creating the perfect storm for disaster when combined with the known presence of dry vegetation which fuels these types of fires," according to the lawsuit. "Defendant LADWP's failure to follow the standard of care in its practices resulted in a catastrophic wildfire, impacting multiple Los Angeles communities."

The lawsuit lists 11 causes of action, including private and public nuisance, negligent infliction of emotional distress, and vicarious liability. The plaintiffs seek economic and non-economic damages as a result of property damage, personal injury and emotional distress. Aguilar v. Los Angeles Department of Water & Power, 18STCV03092 (L.A. Super. Ct., filed Oct. 31, 2018).

McNicholas & McNicholas partner Patrick McNicholas, who represents the plaintiffs, said the utility should have taken additional precautions, such as "powering down" during wildfire threats.

"These are extremely avoidable consequences," said McNicholas, who added, "The utilities, in order to maximize profit, have not done these things."

The complaint also cites a similar lawsuit in which the city of Los Angeles was sued by the state over downed power lines that sparked the 2013 "Powerhouse Fire." That lawsuit ended up being dismissed.