SDG&E Facing Scrutiny for San Diego Wildfires

In October of 2007, the people of San Diego suffered through a terrible tragedy for the second time in four years.  Wildfires sprang up all over the county and ravaged several communities, forcing people from their homes and all but destroying their lives as a result.  Entire residential communities were burned to the ground, and thousands of people now face the prospect of rebuilding their lives from below ground zero.
The reason so many faced such a terrible situation is because many of the insurance policies that covered homes did not completely compensate for the total losses that were recorded, forcing people to face the prospect of simply cutting their losses by way of bankruptcy, further extended credit or some other form of long-term financial ruin. 

One of the first natural reactions of anyone who is placed in this unwanted and undeserved situation is to attempt to find out if anyone in particular is responsible for this damage.  Recent news has revealed that one entity that’s beginning to answer for its role in this disaster is San Diego Gas & Electric. 

The basic allegation against SDG&E is that the company allowed the continued existence of defective power lines in the areas that were burned by two fires in particular, and that this omission led to a huge increase in the amount of damage that these two fires caused in the areas where they burned.  Below is a brief look at each of these fires:

The Witch Creek Fire

The Witch Creek Fire started on October 21, 2007 and began just east of the town of Ramona.  Ultimately, before the fire was finally contained, it had destroyed more than 1,100 homes and more than 500 other buildings, leading to a total of 42 fatalities.  Almost 200,000 acres of land in total were burned.

The Rice Canyon Fire

The Rice Canyon Fire began on October 22, 2007 and originated in the town of Fallbrook.  This blaze ultimately destroyed more than 200 homes and caused at least five injuries.  Nearly 10,000 acres of land overall were burned by this fire.

Next Step

As you can see, these fires destroyed homes, destroyed lands, destroyed businesses and destroyed lives.  However, you do have legal options if you suffered as a result of either of these fires.  A class action lawsuit was filed recently against SDG&E because of these allegedly defective power lines.  If you’d like to find out if you are a good candidate to pursue legal remedies, contact an attorney today.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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