Wildland

Forest Service Firefighter Testifies Before Congress About Harassment

A wildland firefighter with the US Forest Service testified before Congress last week about what she considered to be pervasive sexual harassment and gender discrimination in the federal agencies that manage public lands. Denice Rice, a Fire Prevention Technician for ...

Oregon Seeking To Recoup Over $40 Million in Wildland Fire Costs From Responsible Parties

The State of Oregon is pursuing the people it considers responsible for causing three wildland fires that cost the state over $40 million to fight. The largest of the three claims was filed against Dominic Decarlo and Cloyd Deardorff, who are accused of accidentally starting the Stouts Creek Fire with a mower on July 30, 2015.

US Forest Service Sues Montana’s Largest Utility For Starting Wildland Fire

The US Forest Service is suing Montana’s largest utility for a half-million dollars to recoup the costs associated with fighting the Lakeside Fire outside Helena in 2010. The fire burned over 900 acres in July, 2010, destroying three structures and requiring the evacuation of residents north of Canyon Ferry Lake

YCMTSU New Mexico

A dispute in a small town in New Mexico has resurfaced in the Fire Law news with word that a county has filed a counterclaim against a former fire chief who sued the county earlier this year. You may recall the YCMTSU story of Fire Chief Eddie Velarde, the IC who was arrested at the scene of a fire.

US Forest Service Sues CA Property Owner for $25 Million for Wildland Fire

The US Forest Service has filed suit against a California property owner seeking almost $25 million in compensation for the Mountain Fire in 2013. The suit alleges that negligence in maintaining an electrical box on the property caused the fire that burned 27,531 acres...

Pay Dispute Leads to Early Departure of South African Firefighters

A pay dispute between 300 South African firefighters and their employer that prompted a strike on Wednesday has resulted in the firefighters returning home. The firefighters, who are employed by a South African government-funded organization called Working on Fire, were brought in to help battle the unprecedented wildfires in Alberta.

Cal Fire Sues LA Over Costs of Wildland Fire

The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection is suing the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power to recoup the costs associated with battling the Powerhouse fire in 2013. The suit alleges the fire was started by arcing power lines that dropped burning metal into dry brush.

Too Many Fire Law Headlines

It is one of those days at Fire Law, where there are simply too many headlines to follow them all. So take your pick. Will it be the Everett, Washington firefighters that drove a drunk homeless man out of town and left him, or the Hartford lieutenant who assaulted a captain at a fire scene apparently because the captain disrespected him, or the Oregon firefighter who is charged with sexually assaulting a colleague while training last year in Texas, or whether CalFire is obligated to pay the PSOBP benefits to contract firefighter-pilots killed in air-tanker crashes.

Cal Fire Sues Property Owner To Recoup $25 Million in Costs

Cal Fire is suing a property owner and two caretakers in hopes of recouping over $25 million in costs associated with fighting the Mountain Fire back in July, 2013. The fire burned over 27,000 acres, destroyed 23 structures, and required 260 engines, 20 helicopters, 12 fix wing aircraft, and 3500 firefighters before being brought under control.

Yarnell Hill LODD Settlement Announced

Three lawsuits filed last year by the families of twelve of the nineteen firefighters killed in the Yarnell Hill fire have been settled for $670,000 along with assurances that new wildland firefighting procedures will be implemented by the state of Arizona

Former Idaho Volunteer Firefighter ordered to Pay $2 Million in Restitution

A volunteer firefighter who was convicted of setting a wildland fire in 2012, and served two years in prison, has been ordered to pay more than $2 million in restitution for his crime. Nathaniel Bartholomew was 18 when he intentionally set the Karney Fire that burned over 440 acres, destroyed one home and threatened 275 others.

Arizona Not Liable to Homeowners for Property Lost in the Yarnell Fire

People in the wildland fire community will be familiar with the Yarnell Hill Fire of 2013. This fire occurred in 2013 and led to the death of 19 firefighters, all members of the Granite Mountain Hotshots team. Only one member of the team survived. Apart from this tragedy a number of homes were lost to the fire and homeowners sued the Arizona State Forestry Division (ASFD) claiming that the division ‘negligently failed to protect them from harm that resulted from the Fire’.

Firefighters Claim Sexual Harassment by US Forest Service

A group of seven current and former US Forest Service firefighters have filed a wide-ranging complaint alleging sexual harassment, sexual abuse, and gender discrimination. The complaint was filed last month with the US Department of Agriculture, the parent agency of the US Forest Service.

Colorado and Fire District Sued for $60 Million Over Black Forest Fire

Sixty Colorado residents have filed a pro-se lawsuit against the state, El Paso County, and the Black Forest Fire District over the Black Forest Fire that occurred in June, 2013. The fire, which the suit claims began in part due to a controlled burn, consumed 15,000 acres, destroyed over 500 homes, and killed two people.

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