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County of Maui Files Lawsuit – Climate Change NOT the Cause of Fire


Despite early reportings performed by Democrats, they blamed climate change as the cause of the Maui wildfires.

A new lawsuit filed by the county of Maui might prove otherwise.

The County of Maui is suing Hawaiian Electric Company and its subsidiaries for failure to power down live electrical equipment when a red flag windstorm was reported.

Fox News has more on the story:

Hawaiian officials attributed the cause of catastrophic wildfires to alleged failures from the state’s main power utility company and downed power lines this week after Democrats blamed the disaster on global warming.

In a lawsuit filed Thursday, the government of Maui County, Hawaii, alleged Hawaiian Electric Company (HECO) and its subsidiaries failed to properly power down live electrical equipment amid a red flag windstorm earlier this month. Due to this failure, downed power lines operated by the utility company sparked a series of deadly fires on the island, the lawsuit claimed.

“The lawsuit alleges that the Defendants acted negligently by failing to power down their electrical equipment despite a National Weather Service Red Flag Warning on August 7th,” Maui County said in a release announcing its lawsuit.

“The lawsuit further alleges HECO’s energized and downed power lines ignited dry fuel such as grass and brush, causing the fires,” the announcement added. “The lawsuit also alleges failure to maintain the system and power grid, which caused the systemic failures starting three different fires on August 8th.”

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Hawaiian officials attributed the cause of catastrophic wildfires to alleged failures from the state’s main power utility company and downed power lines this week after Democrats blamed the disaster on global warming.

In a lawsuit filed Thursday, the government of Maui County, Hawaii, alleged Hawaiian Electric Company (HECO) and its subsidiaries failed to properly power down live electrical equipment amid a red flag windstorm earlier this month. Due to this failure, downed power lines operated by the utility company sparked a series of deadly fires on the island, the lawsuit claimed.

“The lawsuit alleges that the Defendants acted negligently by failing to power down their electrical equipment despite a National Weather Service Red Flag Warning on August 7th,” Maui County said in a release announcing its lawsuit.

“The lawsuit further alleges HECO’s energized and downed power lines ignited dry fuel such as grass and brush, causing the fires,” the announcement added. “The lawsuit also alleges failure to maintain the system and power grid, which caused the systemic failures starting three different fires on August 8th.”

According to the lawsuit, the fire was started because of dry grass, which is invasive, and negligence by the electrical company.

Do you think Democrats will admit that the fires are not due to climate change?

Unlikely.

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More from the Independent:

The lawsuit noted that other utilities, such as Southern California Edison Company, Pacific Gas & Electric and San Diego Gas & Electric, have procedures for shutting off power during bad windstorms and said the “severe and catastrophic losses… could have easily been prevented” if Hawaiian Electric had a similar shutoff plan.

While the electric company was already facing public scrutiny, there were several other factors that added to the devastation. A prolonged drought in the area had left plant life, including invasive grasses, highly susceptible to ignition.

As Hurricane Dora passed offshore, winds toppled around 30 power poles in West Maui. Video evidence captured a downed power line igniting dry grass, initiating the fires. Initial efforts by firefighters contained the blaze, but subsequent rekindling and winds drove the fire toward downtown Lahaina.

As the fire raged, traffic came to a halt along Lahaina’s Front Street due to downed power lines and roadblocks set up by authorities. Panicked residents attempted to escape the encroaching flames and thick smoke, some even leaping into the water to avoid the danger.

Search teams, including snorkel-equipped individuals, have been scouring a stretch of water measuring 6.4km for signs of more dead bodies, while painstaking efforts to locate remains among the rubble of destroyed buildings are underway.

The lawsuit seeks compensation for public property and resources that were damaged in Lahaina and the adjacent Kula area.

The tragedy that struck Maui is awful, and my prayers go out to all who have lost so much.

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What needs to happen is to hold those responsible accountable.

Do not blame it on ‘climate change.’

Democrats would sooner shift the blame to nonsense than to uphold accountability.



 

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