Electrical wires and phone poles had been downed in Lahaina, Hawaii, after the lethal wildfires. Maui County has filed a lawsuit concentrating on Hawaiian Electric Company, or HECO, and a number of other of its subsidiaries, searching for “punitive and exemplary damages” and to recoup prices and lack of income from the fires.

Claire Harbage/NPR

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Electrical wires and phone poles had been downed in Lahaina, Hawaii, after the lethal wildfires. Maui County has filed a lawsuit concentrating on Hawaiian Electric Company, or HECO, and a number of other of its subsidiaries, searching for “punitive and exemplary damages” and to recoup prices and lack of income from the fires.

Claire Harbage/NPR

MAUI, Hawaii — Maui County is suing the Hawaiian Electric Company, alleging that its negligence led to the deadliest U.S. wildfire up to now 100 years. The county suffered an estimated $5.5 billion in damages from fires in Lahaina and Kula — and it says the lethal catastrophe was preventable.

The civil swimsuit filed Thursday seeks a jury trial. It targets Hawaiian Electric, or HECO, and a number of other associated firms, searching for “punitive and exemplary damages” and to recoup prices and lack of income from the fires.

HECO is a publicly traded firm that accounts for 95% of Hawaii’s electrical energy prospects. The utility tells NPR that it’s “very disappointed” that the county filed swimsuit.

The actual reason for the fires in Maui is being investigated by federal officers. But dozens of Hawaiian Electric’s poles and energized traces had been felled by excessive winds that propelled the hearth. Videos posted on social media appeared to point out energy traces starting fires, and experts have indicated they suppose the ability traces had been seemingly a significant component.

The utility did not have a plan to chop energy, county says

A home that was destroyed by the wildfire in Lahaina. In a lawsuit, Maui County says the Hawaiian Electric Company ought to have had a plan to chop off electrical energy when situations received harmful.

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A home that was destroyed by the wildfire in Lahaina. In a lawsuit, Maui County says the Hawaiian Electric Company ought to have had a plan to chop off electrical energy when situations received harmful.

Claire Harbage/NPR

Maui County accuses HECO and its subsidiaries of two main failures: not correctly sustaining {the electrical} system and energy grid; and “failing to power down their electrical equipment despite a National Weather Service Red Flag Warning on August 7th.”

The county says the utility ought to have had a plan to chop off electrical energy when situations get harmful.

“The practice of deenergizing power lines during fire weather conditions is common in the Western United States,” the lawsuit states. It notes that giant utilities in wildfire-prone California have carried out “Public Safety Power Shutoff” plans to stop fires throughout high-risk situations.

“Defendants never created a PSPS plan,” the swimsuit states.

Survivors of the hearth in Lahaina have additionally stated downed poles and wires slowed them down as they tried to flee what turned a lethal calamity, saying their path to security was obstructed by utility vans within the roads.

HECO has stated it is controversial to chop off energy

Electrical wires and phone poles are downed after the wildfires in Lahaina, Hawaii. The actual reason for the fires in Maui is being investigated by federal officers.

Claire Harbage/NPR

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Claire Harbage/NPR

Electrical wires and phone poles are downed after the wildfires in Lahaina, Hawaii. The actual reason for the fires in Maui is being investigated by federal officers.

Claire Harbage/NPR

In an emailed assertion to NPR in regards to the county’s lawsuit, Hawaiian Electric emphasised that its focus has been on supporting “not just the people of Maui, but also Maui County.”

“We are very disappointed that Maui County chose this litigious path while the investigation is still unfolding,” the corporate added.

When Hawaiian Electric’s President and CEO Shelee Kimura was requested final week why the corporate did not shut off energy when winds picked up, she stated PSPS plans are controversial.

Kimura stated the packages require coordination with first responders, and that they may additionally pose a danger to susceptible folks with specialised medical tools.

The utility will conduct its personal investigation of the fires, she stated.

Maui County’s lawsuit was filed within the Second Circuit Court in Wailuku.