00:00The U.S. Department of Justice has officially taken legal action against a major electricity
00:05provider in California. The DOJ filed two lawsuits against Southern California Edison,
00:11accusing the electric company of negligence and causing two deadly wildfires,
00:16the Eaton Fire, which happened earlier this year, and the Fairview Fire, which occurred in 2022.
00:23The lawsuits filed today allege a troubling pattern of negligence resulting in death,
00:28destruction, and tens of millions of federal taxpayer dollars spent to clean up one utility
00:33company's mistakes, acting U.S. Attorney Bill Assaylee said in a statement. At least 21
00:39individuals lost their lives in the Eaton and Fairview fires, which also caused extensive damage
00:45to tens of thousands of residential and commercial structures, as well as large areas of national
00:51forest land. According to the DOJ, the Eaton Fire ignited from faulty power infrastructure,
00:56owned, maintained, and operated by SoCal Edison. The federal government is seeking more than $40
01:03million in damages, which include fire suppression costs, rehabilitation of burned areas, and other
01:09environmental damages. In the lawsuit related to the Eaton Fire, the DOJ claims SoCal Edison admitted
01:15that it noticed a fault on one of its transmission lines around the same time the fire began this
01:21January. The DOJ also accuses SoCal Edison of not properly maintaining its equipment, leading to
01:27the Fairview fire, which broke out in September 2022. The Fairview fire burned nearly 14,000 acres of
01:34land in the San Bernardino National Forest and damaged service roads. The federal government is seeking
01:39approximately $37 million in damages, including approximately $20 million in fire suppression costs.
01:46Los Angeles County is also suing SoCal Edison, claiming the company's equipment sparked the
01:51Eaton Fire. For Straight Arrow News, I'm Lauren Keenan. If you want more on this story,
01:56download the Straight Arrow News app or visit san.com.
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