TV personalities Spencer Pratt and Heidi Montag have filed a lawsuit against the city of Los Angeles and Department of Water and Power after they lost their home in the Palisades wildfire on January 8th.
Their home in the Pacific Palisades area, where the biggest fire had broken out in the city and caused the most destruction, was worth $2.5M. The couple, as well as other homeowners, are suing the city over damage to their properties.
Others are also suing the city
The couple aren’t the only ones to sue Los Angeles for damage to their properties, this action has been taken by several homeowners, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
The lawsuit was filed in California’s Superior Court in Los Angeles County on Tuesday 21 January.
Filed for failure to save the homes
The filed lawsuit claims the Department of Water and Power “failed to maintain an adequate water supply system to fight the blazes.”
It also states that the fire was “an inescapable and unavoidable consequence” to the ways the LADWP manages the water supply.
The lawsuit highlights needed repairs
The lawsuit also highlights alleged failure to make the needed repairs for proper water storage, pointing out “delays in repairing the Santa Ynez Reservoir, leaving the massive water storage complex in the heart of the Palisades empty for nearly a year.”
Others have joined the lawsuit
Twenty other homeowners have joined Pratt and Montag’s lawsuit against the city and LADWP.
This includes Pratt’s mother, whose home was burnt down in the fires only hours after Pratt and Montag’s, as confirmed by his sister, Stephanie Pratt.
It claims LADWP’s reserve wasn’t enough
The lawsuit accuses LADWP of losing the water reservoir before the fire.
It states, “With the Santa Ynez Reservoir effectively out of commission, hydrants in Pacific Palisades failed after three tanks each holding one million gallons of water went dry within a span of 12 hours.”
The lawsuit claims LADWP waited for bids
Explaining why LADWP would empty the water reservoir before the fires were tackled, the lawsuit states, “allegedly to seek contractor bids rather than use in-house personnel to repair it.”
“This stated public purpose was far outweighed by the substantial risk posed to Pacific Palisades by wildfires,” added the lawsuit.
Damage outweighed benefits
The lawsuit further claims that “the degree of damage that resulted from the Palisades Fire far outweighed any benefit that could have been realized by outsourcing and delaying repairs.”
Having delayed repairs to the water tanks and hydrants in the area, the lawsuit claims LADWP put homeowners at risk.
The lawsuit seeks out damages
The filed lawsuit also seeks out unspecified damages for the homeowners involved. Alleging “inverse condemnation, which allows property owners to seek compensation over damages caused by public use.”
Sought out damages include property repair costs, lost wages and loss of property enjoyment.
Pratt had stated his intentions
RELATED STORIES
Earlier in the week Pratt had stated his intentions at suing California for the damage done to his home due to alleged negligence.
Pratt spoke to blogger Perez Hilton, whom he told of his efforts to call the fire department who “never came.”
Pratt watched his home burn
“They never came. I watched from my security cameras until our house burned down. There were no fire trucks,” Pratt claimed.
Pratt said that he had called 911 suggesting they send a firetruck to his street in order to avoid the fire spreading, to which he claims he was told the fire department didn’t “have the assets” for it.
