Spencer Pratt and Heidi Montag, together with a number of different Pacific Palisades property homeowners, have sued the town of Los Angeles and the Los Angeles Division of Water and Energy over injury to their properties throughout the Palisades fireplace, including to the rising litigation in opposition to the town within the wake of the catastrophe.
The “Laguna Seaside” and “The Hills” actuality stars, who misplaced their house within the fireplace, filed their lawsuit Tuesday in Los Angeles County Superior Court docket alleging inverse condemnation — a authorized idea that offers property homeowners compensation for injury attributable to public use.
On this case, the fact TV personalities, together with greater than 20 different property homeowners, tenants and people who suffered because of the Palisades fireplace, blamed the town and the utility’s operation of its water provide and associated infrastructure for inflicting injury to their properties.
The criticism cited experiences in regards to the Santa Ynez Reservoir — the reservoir meant to service Pacific Palisades — being offline and emptied earlier than the fireplace erupted Jan. 7. Based on Los Angeles Instances reporting, the 117-million gallon reservoir was offline for repairs since early 2024. The reservoir stays empty, and DWP’s chief of water operations instructed The Instances that repairs requested “ASAP” in January 2024 wouldn’t be finished till April or Could of 2025.
The reservoir state of affairs has sparked outrage in opposition to the DWP and its management, prompting Gov. Gavin Newsom to order an investigation into the causes behind the lack of water strain to fireside hydrants, which hampered firefighting efforts within the metropolis. A minimum of two different lawsuits have been filed.
Former and present DWP officers have acknowledged that if the Santa Ynez Reservoir had held water, higher-elevation areas of the Palisades would have had extra water strain, although it’s unclear for a way lengthy. It’s additionally unclear whether or not the reservoir would have made a significant distinction in firefighters’ means to fight the flames, which burned 23,400 acres. The fireplace was 72% contained as of Thursday, greater than two weeks after it started.
The Palisades fireplace, fueled by ultra-dry climate situations and vegetation, was compounded by hurricane-force winds and led to 11 deaths, destroyed 6,662 constructions and broken 890. Water-systems specialists have stated that with excessive Santa Ana winds that prevented the speedy use of planes and helicopters, the Palisades fireplace initially was inconceivable to manage. Municipal water methods aren’t outfitted for such blazes, they stated.
However the Pratts and plaintiffs blamed the DWP for making “the acutely aware resolution to function the water provide system with the reservoir drained and unusable as a ‘cost-saving’ measure,” limiting the stream of water to the world’s fireplace hydrants and tankers. Additionally they accused the defendants of designing the water system for public use “such that it could not have sufficient water strain to struggle an city fireplace.”
The criticism, obtained Thursday by The Instances, alleges that the amenities, reservoir, water provide system, hydrants, infrastructure and different public enchancment measures taken by the town and utility “offered an inherent hazard and threat of fireplace to personal property.” Additionally they blamed the town and utility for taking “a identified, calculated threat” that non-public property can be broken and destroyed by fireplace.
“On info and perception, the Palisades Fireplace was an inescapable and unavoidable consequence of the water provide system servicing areas in and round Pacific Palisades because it was deliberate and constructed,” the criticism stated. “The system essentially failed, and this failure was a considerable think about inflicting Plaintiffs to undergo the losses alleged on this Grievance.”
The injury “was proximately and considerably attributable to the actions of Defendants … and every of them … precipitated Plaintiffs’ damages,” the criticism stated.
The defendants, who’re looking for an quantity in damages to be decided at trial, stated they haven’t obtained satisfactory compensation for property that was broken or destroyed, which the criticism alleges “constitutes a taking or damaging of Plaintiffs’ property by the Defendants, and every of them, with out simply compensation.”
Additionally they wish to get better the prices of repairing or changing misplaced or destroyed property, any misplaced wages or enterprise earnings, and dwelling bills stemming from lack of use of their properties, plus the authorized prices.
Representatives for Metropolis Atty. Hydee Feldstein Soto’s workplace and the DWP didn’t instantly reply Thursday to The Instances’ requests for remark.
The Pratts have spoken out prolifically on social media and in information interviews about what they misplaced within the fireplace and their efforts to boost cash in its wake. Earlier this month, Spencer Pratt made a public plea for followers to purchase and stream his spouse’s 2010 album “Superficial,” sending it to No. 1 on the iTunes chart. He additionally stated that he made a “life-changing” amount of cash on TikTok from people looking for to assist his household get better. A spokesperson for the couple didn’t instantly reply Thursday to a request for remark.
In the meantime, at the very least 20 lawsuits have been filed in opposition to Southern California Edison in reference to the Eaton fireplace, which razed giant swaths of Altadena whereas it burned concurrently with the Palisades fireplace. The plaintiffs allege that proof suggests the Eaton fireplace was began by SCE’s electrical gear.
Instances workers writers Matt Hamilton and David Zahniser contributed to this report.
