Lawsuit alleges SDG&E caused Norte Fire in San Clemente, San Juan Capistrano
San Diego utility sued over Norte Fire
Officials are investigating the cause of the Norte Fire, but a new lawsuit claims San Diego Gas & Electric is responsible.
ORANGE COUNTY, Calif. - Officials are investigating the cause of the Norte Fire, but a new lawsuit claims San Diego Gas & Electric is responsible.
The complaint comes as crews continue to contain the fire that destroyed several homes in San Juan Capistrano.
A new lawsuit alleges the Norte Fire that broke out in San Clemente and San Juan Capistrano on Friday was caused by San Diego Gas & Electric.
Crews making progress in containing Norte Fire
Crews are making progress in containing the Norte Fire that destroyed several homes in Orange County.
Bridgford, Gleason & Artinian filed a complaint on behalf of a San Juan Capistrano resident who had to evacuate and alleges that SDG&E is responsible for starting the fire.
Attorneys involved in the lawsuit say the San Diego utility had a power line outage near the ignition point of the Norte Fire and explained why they allege this was a utility-caused fire.
"There's been no explanation other than a possibility that this was caused by SDG&E's lines," said Michael Artinian, attorney with Bridgford, Gleason & Artinian. "In terms of timing of the reports, you have a report of an outage by SDG&E, which was just confirmed today with the CPUC that they filed a report at 11:31 a.m. on October 16 with that outage and then at 11:33 a.m. was the reported start of the fire, and the location of the ignition of the fire appears to be right in the location of that utility line."
FOX 11 reached out to San Diego Gas & Electric for a comment and received the following statement:
"The cause of the Norte Fire is under investigation, and we are cooperating with the Orange County Fire Authority. They have not determined the cause of the Norte Fire.
SDG&E experienced an outage on Circuit 197 in San Clemente at 11:31 a.m. on Friday, Oct. 16. The cause of the outage remains under investigation. Smoke and ash from fires can cause electric outages and there is currently no basis to conclude that there is a connection between our facilities and the ignition.
We will continue to work with emergency personnel, who have done an extraordinary job protecting the San Clemente community. Our focus is always on the safety of our customers, and we are grateful for their tireless work and support to protect the community.
At this time, evacuation orders have been lifted and all customers who can receive power have been restored. We know this has been a very difficult time, and our thoughts remain with everyone impacted by this fire as the recovery process begins."
As of Monday evening, containment of the Norte Fire was at 80 percent. Several residents in San Juan Capistrano, close to where the fire damaged several homes, are applauding the hundreds of firefighters working to contain the fire.
"Heroes, total heroes, they saved this whole area. They really did," said resident Nancy Finley. "Of course, you always think about your neighbors but it's just a miracle that it wasn't worse in my opinion, but they did an amazing job out there."
While thousands had to evacuate, no residents were injured in the Norte Fire.
The Source: This report referenced information from a lawsuit filed by Bridgford, Gleason & Artinian, an interview with attorney Michael Artinian, information confirmed with the California Public Utilities Commission, and interviews with local residents.