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https://patch.com/california/malibu/fights-not-over-victims-seek-justice-after-woolsey-fire
MALIBU, CA — As the flames of the Woolsey Fire ripped through the canyon, licking the properties in his neighborhood, Alexander Robertson gripped his fire hose — and doubt gripped him.
He kept thinking, "Have I made a really horrible decision to stay out here?"
A lawyer, not a firefighter, Robertson felt compelled to stay and fight because crews were stretched thin across the state, simultaneously battling the monster Woolsey, Hill and Camp fires, which made for the most destructive wildfire season in California history.
“I have 500 feet of fire hose, so I hooked up the hose to a fire hydrant and went into my neighbor’s back yard to help protect their house,” he said. “There were no firefighters or fire engines in the area, so it’s always a bit daunting.”
Drenched in sweat and facing a wall of flames, Robertson wasn’t sure he could make a difference against a massive fire like Woolsey. However, in the year since, he’s taken his battle to the courtroom, where he believes he can help his neighbors and other victims of the fire win a class-action lawsuit against Southern California Edison. Now, Robertson, an attorney, represents more than 750 fire victims in the case against the utility giant, which they blame for the blaze.
Robertson, who works with one of two main firms representing Woolsey fire victims, said that because the Woolsey fire burned right up to his house and across the street from his office in Westlake Village, there is a certain satisfaction in fighting for his neighbors. Having lived through it himself, Robertson said he understands the fear and distress of the fire victims he represents.
The largest wildfire in Los Angeles County history, the Woolsey Fire destroyed 1,643 buildings, leaving residents with nothing and forcing them to slowly rebuild from the ashes. A year later, lawyers and recovery groups are still fighting for the residents who lost it all, hoping to help in their healing process and make Southern California Edison pay for their losses.
Lawyers Fight For Fire Victims ...
Though the official report has yet to be released, several groups, including the Los Angeles County government, are honing in on Southern California Edison. They allege the utility giant’s damaged equipment may have caused the Woolsey Fire. The county filed a lawsuit seeking millions of dollars in damages related to the Woolsey Fire. On top of that, more than 2,000 total plaintiffs have sued SCE, alleging negligence and damaged electrical equipment by the utility giant led to the devastating wildfire, Robertson said.
“Many clients have been completely wiped out, they had no evacuation notice and had no time to gather up memorabilia and valuables,” Robertson said. “It’s an ongoing nightmare for them.”
SCE spokesperson David Eisenhauer declined to comment on the lawsuits. However, he said the safety of the communities is “paramount,” and the utility company is taking measures to protect residents from wildfires by strengthening their system, using “cutting edge technology” and turning off power in some areas when fire conditions warrant.
“Our thoughts remain with all those across the state who have been affected by these devastating wildfires,” he said. “We continue to work to help our customers and communities recover and rebuild from these catastrophic events.”
In California, there is a strict liability standard for utility companies like SCE. Attorneys don’t need to prove fault, just that the company’s equipment started the fire, Brian Strange, another lawyer representing Woolsey fire victims, told Patch.
Though attorneys don’t need to prove who is at fault in California, the common theme in all the lawsuits is liability, with most directly blaming SCE for the fire, said Strange, who represents more than 250 plaintiffs suing the utility.
Historically, there have been a number of cases where utility companies have been found liable for wildfires, but most of the time, they settle before trial, Robertson said.
“The community will be changed forever when those people who do not have the time, the money, or the desire to rebuild a house choose to sell their land and move on,” Strange said. “This case is different because it involves friends and neighbors.”
The lawsuits are seeking the monetary difference between what an individual’s insurance paid and the total cost to rebuild, Robertson said. But in addition to financial recovery, the lawsuits are focused on trying to force SCE to take steps to ensure a fire like Woolsey doesn’t happen again, he said.
Power safety shut-offs are a “short-term Band-Aid but not a long-term solution,” he said, emphasizing there is nothing in place to prevent another Woolsey fire from starting.
“We can’t keep having entire communities burn down because electrical utility companies didn’t protect, inspect and prepare their equipment,” Robertson said. “We have the ability through the lawsuit to force Edison to take certain steps to prevent future fires. If Edison had properly inspected their overhead electrical equipment, we believe this fire could have been avoided.”
... And Fire Victims Fight For Survival
For some Woolsey Fire victims, the fight isn't about accountability. A year later, it's still a fight for survival.
Holly Haynes, a single mother of three children ages 7, 10 and 12 awoke at 3:30 a.m. to the sound of her dogs frantically barking. She opened the door to let them outside, and a gush of smoke knocked her backward. Her dogs ran toward the other end of the house, and when she opened the front door, they bolted for the car.
“I got the kids, and we picked up whatever we could grab, which was basically just our pillows,” Haynes said. “We got the animals in the car and evacuated in the middle of the night.”
As they drove down the 101 Freeway, they were met with a cascading wall of orange fire. It was overwhelming, Hayes said. She and her children were stunned.
Unable to find a place to stay in the middle of the night, they drove to an airport parking lot and slept in the car.
By the time they awoke, their Calabasas rental home was destroyed by the smoke from the fire. They lost everything, and renter’s insurance covered only a fraction of the family’s losses.
“The whole process was overwhelming, unexpected and scary. We were on a budget making ends meet, but staying ahead of it, and I knew at that point it was all going to be different,” Haynes said. “I didn’t have a nest egg of savings waiting. I didn’t know it was going to be like this, but you just learn to deal with it.”
Over the past year, Haynes and her three young children have been couch-surfing, staying with her parents in Texas and moving between AirBnB rentals. Fortunately, she said, The Los Angeles Region Long Term Recovery Group reached out her in September and assigned her a case manager to help the family find housing.
The Los Angeles Region Long Term Recovery Group is an organization whose mission is to “coordinate disaster recovery resources in affected areas to address disaster-caused recovery needs and strengthen the resilience of impacted individuals,” according to its website.
The group is made up of representatives from dozens of faith-based, nonprofit, government, business and other organizations to help victims recover from the fire. Woolsey Fire victims, who are still looking for recovery assistance, can contact the Los Angeles Region Long Term Recovery Group, city representatives working with wildfire victims or visit the LA County Recovery Resource Guide.
“They are there to listen to your needs, and in the madness, they’ve been helping us get on our feet so we’re not just flipping around trying to compete with vacationers with these AirBnBs,” Haynes said. “It’s like working together as a team to move out of this finally, so it doesn’t just drag on forever.”
The recovery group has helped Haynes feel more in control, which she said was the hardest part of her recovery process.
“We are so grateful to them for lending a hand,” she said. “It's been quite a year, and I am ready for this chapter to be behind us, where we don't even have to call ourselves victims of the Woolsey Fire."
Woolsey Fire Anniversary Series
Nov. 8, 2019, marks the one-year anniversary of the Woolsey Fire — the most devastating and destructive fire in LA County history. This weekend, we reflect on what happened during the fire with emergency response crews, residents and officials and prepare for what lies ahead in an era of catastrophic California wildfires.
We talk to firefighters, city officials, lawyers, residents and researchers to see what the recovery has been like, who is still fighting for the fire victims one year later and what lessons we've learned along the way. Fire victims share what it was like to lose it all and the complicated grief that followed. Firefighters tell stories of fighting on the front lines for multiple days in a row, and city officials recount what it was like to evacuate the entire city of Malibu and rebuilding destroyed communities. Lawyers describe their ongoing battle for accountability, and scientists explain how California's fires are changing over time.
One thing is for certain: The Woolsey Fire changed us.