By Jonathan Stempel
(Reuters) -The U.S. government filed two lawsuits against Southern California Edison on Thursday, blaming the utility's equipment for sparking wildfires, including the Eaton Fire in January, that damaged National Forest System lands.
Both complaints against the unit of Edison International were filed in Los Angeles federal court, and seek damages for negligence, trespass by fire, and violations of California public safety laws.
Southern California Edison, known as SCE, had no immediate
comment.
January's wildfires in Southern California killed at least 30 people and destroyed or damaged more than 16,000 structures.
Much of the damage came from the Eaton Fire in Altadena and the Palisades Fire in Pacific Palisades.
In one lawsuit, the U.S. Department of Justice blamed the January 7 Eaton Fire on faulty SCE power infrastructure, or sparks from that infrastructure, causing the burning of nearly 8,000 acres (3,200 hectares) in Angeles National Forest in Los Angeles County.
The second lawsuit said a sagging SCE power line sparked the September 5, 2022, Fairview Fire, burning nearly 14,000 acres in San Bernardino National Forest in Riverside County.
In both lawsuits, the Justice Department accused SCE of knowing that high winds could spark wildfires, but failing to upgrade its equipment to reduce the risks.
Property owners and shareholders have also sued SCE or Edison over the January wildfires.
Edison shares were down 1.6% in early afternoon trading.
The cases are U.S. v. Southern California Edison Co et al., U.S. District Court, Central District of California, Nos. 25-08356 and 25-08357.
(Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York and Vallari Srivastava in BengaluruEditing by Rod Nickel)
