Southern California Edison (SCE), the electricity provider suspected of sparking one of the major wildfires that devastated parts of Los Angeles earlier this year, has announced it will compensate victims — even though it has not been formally found liable.
The company, which is already facing several lawsuits related to the blazes, said on Wednesday that it would set up a fund to provide financial support to those who lost their homes or suffered health issues as a result of the fires. No specific figure or timeline was given for the compensation scheme.
The initiative could help SCE avoid drawn-out legal disputes as it attempts to manage the fallout from the disaster, which saw two massive fires erupt in January, killing 31 people and destroying more than 16,000 homes and buildings in and around Los Angeles.
Investigations are still underway to determine what caused the two separate fires — one in the affluent Pacific Palisades and Malibu areas, and the other in Altadena, a more modest community in the hills to the northeast of the city.
Attention has increasingly focused on a Southern California Edison powerline, suspected of triggering the Eaton Fire that devastated Altadena. Eyewitnesses and video evidence suggest the equipment may have emitted sparks that ignited the blaze.
Pedro Pizarro, president and CEO of SCE’s parent company, Edison International, said victims should not have to wait for the outcome of the official probe before receiving help.
“Even though the details of how the Eaton Fire started are still being evaluated, SCE will offer an expedited process to pay and resolve claims fairly and promptly,” he said. “This allows the community to focus more on recovery instead of lengthy, expensive litigation.”
The compensation fund will cover a range of claims, including damage to or loss of homes, business property damage, disruption to business operations, personal injury, and wrongful death.
California’s worsening climate — linked to over a century of unchecked fossil fuel use — has increased the frequency and severity of wildfires. However, SCE’s infrastructure has repeatedly been implicated in major blazes.
Among them was the 2018 Woolsey Fire, which killed three people and scorched the hills behind Malibu. In May 2023, the company also agreed to an $82.5 million settlement over the 2020 Bobcat Fire, which burned nearly 116,000 acres in the San Gabriel Mountains.
