Edison is suing L.A. County and other agencies, saying they share responsibility for the fire’s death, destruction of Eaton

Southern California Edison sued Los Angeles County, water utilities and two companies including SoCalGas Friday, saying their mistakes contributed to the deaths and injuries of last year’s Eaton wildfire.

Edison is now facing hundreds of lawsuits from victims of the fire, which claim its transmission line started a devastating fire that killed at least 19 people and destroyed thousands of homes in Altadena. The cost of settling those cases could be in the billions of dollars.

Doug Dixon, the attorney representing Edison in the fire lawsuits, told the Times that Edison filed the lawsuits “to make sure that all those responsible are at the table in this legal process.”

The organization’s two legal filings in LA County Superior Court paint a picture of the widespread mismanagement of emergency response on the night of the fire.

Edison blames the county fire department, the sheriff’s department and the office of emergency management for their failure to warn residents of Altadena west of Lake Avenue to evacuate.

The Times was revealed last January that Altadena in the west did not receive warnings to evacuate, and orders to evacuate people came hours after flames and smoke threatened the community. All but one of the 19 people who died in the Eaton fire were found west of Altadena.

Edison also sued LA County for failing to send fire trucks to the community. A Periodic investigation they found that at the critical time of the fire, only one county fire truck was west of Lake Avenue.

The power company has also filed a lawsuit against six water companies, including Pasadena Water & Power, saying there is not enough water available for firefighters.

“Compounding the potential disaster, water systems supplying areas affected by the Eaton Fire failed as the fire spread, leaving firefighters and residents without water to fight the fire,” the lawsuit said.

Another lawsuit is against SoCalGas. Edison says the company failed to turn off power lines after the fire broke out, making the disaster worse.

“SoCalGas did not initiate a four-day widespread shutdown — until January 11, 2025 — in the area affected by the Eaton Fire,” the complaint states. “Meanwhile, the Eaton Fire has continued to spread due to natural gas.”

“The risks and deficiencies in the SoCalGas system that led to the spread of the fire were known long ago by SoCalGas, yet it failed to take adequate responsibility for the design, construction and maintenance of its system,” the complaint states. “The result was a disaster.”

Edison also sued Genasys, a company that provides the county with emergency alert software.

In addition, the agency sued the county for failing to remove brush, which they say caused the fire to ignite and spread quickly, causing extensive damage.

In March, LA County appealed against Edison, claiming its transmission line caused the fire, requiring the district to commit tens of millions of dollars to respond to the fire and its aftermath. The county is seeking compensation for damaged infrastructure and parks, as well as cleanup and repair efforts, lost taxes and overtime for county employees.

Edison’s new claims will be heard in a consolidated Eaton fire lawsuit in Superior Court, which is also handling a lawsuit the county and other public entities filed against the power company.

District and water agency officials, as well as the two companies, were not immediately available.

The water agencies that Edison is suing include the City of Sierra Madre Water Department, Kinneloa Irrigation District, Rubio Canyon Land & Water Association, Las Flores Water Company and Lincoln Avenue Water Company.

A federal investigation into the fire, which is being handled jointly by LA County Fire and the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, has not been released.

Edison said that leading theory that its century-old unused transmission line in Eaton Canyon somehow came back into operation on the night of Jan. 7. 2025 and caused a fire.

The fire roared through Altadena, burning 14,021 acres and destroying more than 9,400 homes and other structures.