According to court documents, the federal government filed a lawsuit against PacifiCorp on Thursday, alleging that the 2020 Archie Creek fire was caused by the second-largest energy provider in Oregon’s recklessness.
Numerous claims filed by victims of the Archie Creek disaster and other wildfires in 2020 have already been resolved by PacifiCorp, including one that the corporation settled for $29.2 million in March and another for $178 million in June.
The action, which was filed in Portland’s U.S. District Court on Thursday, requires the business to reimburse the federal government for hundreds of millions of dollars in expenses related to the Archie Creek fire.
The lawsuit claims that approximately 67,000 acres of federal land were among the 131,000 acres of Douglas County that were destroyed.
According to the lawsuit, PacifiCorp’s careless operation, inspection, and/or maintenance of power lines, failure to prepare for high fire-risk circumstances, and failure to control vegetation surrounding power lines were all direct causes of the incident.
In a response, PacifiCorp stated that it has been collaborating with the government to address the government’s fire-related concerns.
“The U.S. government’s decision to bring a lawsuit in federal district court is regrettable,” the company stated. To find a fair solution to this issue, PacifiCorp will keep collaborating with the US government.
The lawsuit claims that PacifiCorp was urged by the federal government to reimburse the costs of the March 15, 2023, fire, but as of Thursday, the business had not done so.
The lawsuit was submitted on the same day that the Public Utility Commission of Oregon authorized an 8.5% rate hike that would take effect on January 1. According to the commission’s official ruling authorizing the lesser rate hike, the corporation had first requested a 17.5% rise.
Fedor Zarkhin is an enterprise and breaking news reporter. Have you got a story? Contact him by email at [email protected] or by phone at 971-373-2905.
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