Pacific Electric Power Co., a unit of PacifiCorp, said Monday it has agreed to a $178 million settlement with more than 400 Oregon plaintiffs, the latest multimillion-dollar payout related to the deadly wildfires that ravaged the state in 2020.
In other cases heard over the past year, Oregon juries ordered PacifiCorp to pay hundreds of millions of dollars to victims in multiple verdicts. Ongoing litigation could expose it to billions of dollars in liability.
George McCoy, one of the plaintiffs’ attorneys, said most of the 403 plaintiffs in Monday’s settlement were affected by the Echo Mountain Complex Fire that devastated the central Oregon coast, while others were affected by fires in the state. The impact of the Santiam fires raging east of the capital.
The utility said in a statement that it had settled nearly 1,500 claims stemming from the 2020 Labor Day wildfires. The fire, one of the worst natural disasters in Oregon’s history, killed nine people, burned more than 1,875 square miles (4,856 square kilometers) and destroyed thousands of homes and other buildings.
“We think this is a great way for our clients to be able to rebuild and recover from these traumatic events, and we think this will give them the ability to begin that process immediately,” McCoy said.
PacifiCorp faces more lawsuits over the fires, including one filed last month by dozens of Oregon wineries and vineyards seeking more than $100 million in damages. In the lawsuit, wine producers claim the utility company’s decision not to shut off power during the Labor Day storm caused fires, smoke and soot that damaged their grapes and reduced their harvests and sales.
Last June, a jury found PacifiCorp liable for negligent failure to cut off power to 600,000 customers despite warnings from senior fire officials. The jury found that its actions were negligent and willful and that it should pay punitive damages and other damages – a ruling that applied to a class that included the owners of as many as 2,500 properties.
Thousands of other class members are still awaiting trial, but the parties are also expected to go to mediation to reach a settlement.
Last week, Oregon utility regulators rejected PacifiCorp’s request seeking to limit its liability in wildfire lawsuits.
Under the proposal, utilities would only be responsible for paying actual economic losses in lawsuit awards. The Oregon Public Utilities Commission said the requirement was too broad and the move would ban compensation for non-economic damages such as pain, mental anguish and emotional distress.
