Victims file suit against PG&E.
Pacific Gas and Electric Co. and its parent company were sued Tuesday in San Francisco County Superior Court by attorneys representing several victims of the Camp Fire, one of what will likely be multiple legal attempts to hold the utility responsible for the historic disaster.
The lawsuit accuses the San Francisco energy company of failing to properly maintain its infrastructure and equipment, and it claims those alleged missteps resulted in the ignition of the still-uncontained blaze in Butte County east of Chico.
Mike Danko, one of the attorneys involved in the case, believes his lawsuit is the first against PG&E in connection to the Camp Fire. He said Tuesday afternoon he expected
others to be filed soon.
State fire investigators have not determined what caused the Camp Fire, which has become both the deadliest and most destructive wildfire in California’s recorded history.
But PG&E told state regulators a high-voltage power line near the origin point of the conflagration had a problem just before the fire started.
Tuesday’s lawsuit calls PG&E’s safety record an “abomination” and describes the utility as having “developed a regular pattern of placing its own profits before the safety of the California residents it serves.”
The suit also alleges the Camp Fire resulted from a flawed corporate culture.
“Rather than spend the money it obtains from customers for infrastructure maintenance and safety, PG&E funnels this funding to boost its own corporate profits and compensation,” the suit says. “This pattern and practice of favoring profits over having a solid and well-maintained infrastructure that would be safe and dependable for years to come left PG&E vulnerable to an increased risk of a catastrophic event such as the Camp Fire.”
PG&E, contacted for comment, did not address the specifics of the suit. In a statement, the company noted that the “cause of the Camp Fire has not yet been determined” and that it is focused on responding to the emergency.
Danko said his legal team is accepting more clients on the case, but attorneys moved quickly to help the initial clients “be heard right away.” He said filing his case quickly could also help all the suits be coordinated in San Francisco, should others come to fruition.
“They’ve destroyed people’s lives, killed people and burned down many houses — in fact, an entire town,” Danko said of PG&E. “At some point, there has to be accountability.” J.D. Morris is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: jd.morris@ sfchronicle.com Twitter: @thejdmorris