Los Angeles (United States) (AFP) – The power company whose lines are suspected of starting one of the deadly fires that ravaged Los Angeles this year said Wednesday it would compensate victims even without any formal finding it was at fault. Southern California Edison — which faces multiple costly lawsuits over the huge blazes — said it would establish a fund that would offer payouts to those who lost their homes or whose health was affected. It gave no figure for the size of the fund, and no precise timeline, but such a system could allow the company to avoid some of the bumper legal battles it is expected to face.
Two enormous fires that erupted in January killed 31 people and destroyed more than 16,000 homes and buildings around Los Angeles. Investigations are still ongoing to determine the causes of two separate blazes that ravaged the affluent neighborhood of Pacific Palisades and parts of Malibu, and the city of Altadena, a more modest suburb located in the mountains to the northeast. For several months, the finger of blame has been pointing at a Southern California Edison (SCE) powerline as the root of the Eaton Fire that consumed Altadena. Several videos and witness accounts suggest that the equipment produced sparks that could have caused the fast-moving conflagration.
Victims “shouldn’t have to wait for the final conclusions in the Eaton Fire investigation to get the financial support they need to begin rebuilding,” said Pedro Pizarro, president and CEO of Edison International, SCE’s parent company. “Even though the details of how the Eaton Fire started are still being evaluated, SCE will offer an expedited process to pay and resolve claims fairly and promptly. This allows the community to focus more on recovery instead of lengthy, expensive litigation.”
The fund will cover homeowners and tenants whose homes were damaged or destroyed, as well as business owners whose property was damaged or whose business was interrupted, a statement said. It will also pay out for personal injuries and offer compensation to family members of those who died in the fire.
California’s changing climate — a result of humanity’s unchecked use of fossil fuels over the last 150 years — is increasing the frequency and intensity of extreme events, including wildfires. But SCE’s powerlines have frequently been pinpointed as the source of ignition in large blazes. That has included the 2018 Woolsey Fire, which killed three people and ravaged the mountains behind Malibu. Last May, the utility also agreed to pay $82.5 million to settle lawsuits related to the Bobcat Fire, a blaze that burned nearly 116,000 acres (47,000 hectares) in the San Gabriel Mountains in 2020.
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