Pacific Gas and Electric lawsuit overview:
- Who: A group of private timberland owners and forest products business entities filed a forest fire lawsuit against Pacific Gas and Electric Co. and related entities.
- Why: The plaintiffs claim that PG&E’s failed to properly inspect, maintain and operate its electrical equipment, leading to the massive 2021 Dixie Fire, which the plaintiffs say devastated their trees and business opportunities.
- Where: The Pacific Gas and Electric lawsuit was filed in California Superior Court.
A group of seven forest owners filed a Pacific Gas and Electric lawsuit in the wake of the 2021 “Dixie Fire,” claiming the massive fire was started by PG&E’s electrical equipment.
The plaintiffs include private timberland owners and forest products business entities whose properties, trees and business opportunities were devastated by the Dixie fire, which the forest fire describes as the “largest single, non-complex, wildfire in California history and one of the largest wildfires overall in United States history.”
The Dixie Fire was allegedly ignited when PG&E’s 12-kilovolt distribution line made contact with a Douglas fir tree. The blaze ultimately scorched more than 963,000 acres.
The plaintiffs claim they incurred road repair and reforestation costs and lost value of trees. They estimate their damages to be more than $183 million, according to the Pacific Gas and Electric lawsuit.
Forest fire lawsuit: Dixie Fire caused by ‘high-risk’ tree falling on electrical line
In 2022, a California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection investigation found the fire was caused when a visibly decayed “high-risk” fir tree fell onto PG&E’s electrical distribution lines. PG&E did not arrive at the scene for approximately 10 hours, which the investigation determined was “a direct and negligent factor in the ignition of the fire,” the forest fire lawsuit says.
The plaintiffs assert PG&E had a duty to prevent their equipment from contributing to forest fires yet failed to comply with minimum standards for inspecting, maintaining and operating the electrical equipment in its utility infrastructure and failing to maintain the surrounding vegetation to prevent contact with its electrical equipment.
The forest fire lawsuit points to other California wildfires linked to PG&E equipment to show the defendant was well aware that its equipment could ignite future wildfires. The plaintiffs say PG&E’s electrical equipment ignited the 2015 Butte Fire, the 2017 North Bay Fires, the 2018 Camp Fire, the 2018 Kincade Fire and the 2020 Zogg Fire.
“These wildfires are not the result of an ‘act of God’ or other force majeure,” the Pacific Gas and Electric lawsuit says. “Despite these previous wildfires, defendants have a history of acting recklessly and with conscious disregard for safety, including the circumstances leading to the ignition of the Dixie Fire.”
The forest fire lawsuit asserts claims for inverse condemnation, trespass, private nuisance, public nuisance, negligence, and violations of California’s public utilities code and health and safety code.
In 2019, a bankruptcy judge approved a $24.5 billion Pacific Gas and Electric lawsuit settlement plan for victims of previous California wildfires.
What do you think about the Pacific Gas and Electric lawsuit? Join the discussion in the comments.
The plaintiffs are represented by Edward C. Duckers, Lauren V. Neuhaus and Matthew D. Segal of Stoel Rives LLP.
The Pacific Gas and Electric lawsuit is Collins Pine Company, et al. v. PG&E Corporation, et al., Case No. CGC-24-613843, in the Superior Court of the State of California, County of San Francisco.
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