(Bloomberg) -- Edison International Inc.’s southern California utility was sued over the death of a woman whose home burned in one of the catastrophic Los Angeles fires, in a case brought by a prominent civil rights lawyer on behalf of a historically Black community.
Evelyn “Petey” McClendon, who drove a bus for Pasadena Unified School District, died Jan. 7 when the Eaton Fire destroyed her home and those of family members in the Altadena neighborhood outside the city of Los Angeles, according to the complaint. She was in her late 50s.
It appears to be the first wrongful-death suit filed against Southern California Edison over the conflagration, which is about 65% contained after claiming 17 lives, scorching more 14,000 acres and destroying upwards of 7,000 homes and businesses.
The McClendon suit, like a flurry of previous complaints by property owners, alleges the utility is to blame for igniting the blaze. Edison’s decision to leave some power lines operating during a historic windstorm last week is under scrutiny as an investigation gathers pace.
The company said it’s reviewing the suits and focused on safely restoring power to customers. Edison International Chief Executive Officer Pedro Pizarro said this week that the utility did not detect any electrical issues on a transmission line near the start of the fire.
“Our hearts remain with our communities during the devastating fires in Southern California and we remain committed to supporting them through this difficult time,” a spokesperson for the utility said in a statement.
McClendon’s family members found her remains a day after the fires ignited Jan. 7 in the “wreckage and the rubble” of her home, according to the suit. Her brother’s neighboring house also burned to the ground. McClendon’s mother, Evelyn Cathirell, is the plaintiff in the suit, which was filed by a legal team featuring Ben Crump, a noted civil rights attorney.
Crump’s firm said in a statement he seeks justice for the family’s loss and “to ensure that the Altadena community receives the support it needs to recover fully.”
“Petey’s final hours were filled with chaos and panic,” according to the 30-page complaint filed Thursday in state court in Los Angeles. “The surroundings were straight out of a disaster movie with embers blowing freely in the wind, spot fires sprouting up in all directions, and a ceaseless wind.”
Firefighters have made progress against the Eaton Fire and another in Pacific Palisades, the two biggest in the LA area, but a lack of rain and another round of high winds forecast next week has officials concerned about the conflagrations continuing to spread.
Some in Altadena fear that the wildfire will change the character of a neighborhood that has long been home to middle-class residents, many of them Black. Nestled in the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains, northeast of Los Angeles proper, Altadena featured streets lined with Craftsman-style bungalows that were home to working-class families and artists for generations.
The much wealthier enclave of Pacific Palisades is served by a public utility, the Los Angeles Department of Power and Water. The utility has been accused in a lawsuit of failing to provide enough water for firefighters to douse wind-whipped flames before they spread and consumed scores of multimillion-dollar homes.
The case is Evelyn Cathirell v. Edison International, 25NNCV00306, California Superior Court, County of Los Angeles.
--With assistance from Mark Chediak and Brian K. Sullivan.
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