Downed Municipal Power Lines May Have Caused LA’s Palisades Fire, Lawsuit Claims

Firefighters work near a church destroyed in the Palisades Fire, in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood in Los Angeles, California, U.S. January 10, 2025. David Ryder/Reuters

Several residents of Los Angeles who were affected by the deadly Palisades wildfire sued city authorities over claims that municipal utility power lines ignited the fire, according to a lawsuit filed Monday.

The suit cited a Washington Post article dated January 12, in which the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power told the newspaper its power lines near the origin of the fire had been disconnected from the electricity system for five years, which the residents’ lawyers said was incorrect.