July 19, 2016

Homeowner sued for $25M after wildfire in California

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The federal government sued a homeowner for nearly $25 million last week, contending his negligence sparked a 2013 fire in the mountains east of Los Angeles that forced 5,000 people from their homes.

The lawsuit says that a short in a poorly maintained electrical junction box sparked a blaze in the San Jacinto Mountains above Palm Springs that charred more than 27,500 acres of brush and timber — about 43 square miles — and at one point threatened the town of Idyllwild.

Investigators determined that the lid of the plastic box containing wires was warped and ajar, the lawsuit said.

“As a result, an electrical discharge inside the box shot sparks and hot material out of the box and onto dry ground vegetation below,” according to the lawsuit.

“Property owners and their agents have a responsibility to ensure that property under their control is maintained in a safe fashion,” U.S. Attorney Eileen M. Decker said in a statement.

The fire endangered “countless lives, including those of firefighters who battle these large-scale blazes,” she said.

The lawsuit names Saudi businessman and homeowner Tarek M. Al-Shawaf and two caretakers he employed at his home, known as Gibraltar West, in the community of Mountain Center.

The lawsuit was filed after Al-Shawaf and the caretakers failed to pay the costs of firefighting and fire damage demanded by the government, according to the lawsuit.

But James R. Lance, attorney for Al-Shawaf and the caretakers, denied that his clients had a role in starting the fire.

The U.S. Forest Service spent more than $15 million on firefighting, and the blaze caused in excess of $9 million in damage to resources, ranging from wildlife and timber to eroded soil, according to the lawsuit. More than $300,000 was spent on emergency rehabilitation of the area.