Xcel Energy, the utility provider on Thursday (March 8) stated that its facilities may have played a role in triggering a massive wildfire in the Texa Panhandle, which has now become the largest blaze in the state’s history.
Texas authorities are still investigating the fire, which has scorched nearly 1,700 square miles (4,400 square kilometers) and caused the destruction of numerous structures.
Contrary to claims of negligence in maintaining and operating infrastructure, the Minnesota-based company said in a statement that it disputes claims that “it acted negligently” in maintaining and operating infrastructure.
“Based on currently available information, Xcel Energy acknowledges that its facilities appear to have been involved in an ignition of the Smokehouse Creek fire,” the company said in a statement.
Watch: Wildfires in Texas ravage over 500,000 acres, prompt evacuation orders
Electric utilities have taken responsibility for wildfires across the US, citing instances such as fallen power lines causing a blaze in Maui last year and transmission lines sparking a significant California wildfire in 2019.
The Texas wildfire is part of a series of fires that erupted in the rural Panhandle last week, leading to evacuation orders in several small communities.
Officials estimate that up to 500 structures may have been destroyed in these fires, including the Smokehouse Creek fire, which is now the largest in Texas history.
As of Wednesday (March 6), this wildfire, which also extended into neighboring Oklahoma, was approximately 44 per cent contained.
A lawsuit filed on Friday (March 1) in Hemphill County alleged that a downed power line near the town of Stinnett on Feb. 26 sparked the blaze.
Filed on behalf of homeowner Melanie McQuiddy against Xcel Energy Services Inc. and two other utilities, the lawsuit claimed that the fire originated when a wooden pole, inadequately inspected and maintained by the defendants, splintered and snapped off at its base.
Earlier on Friday (March 1) rainfall brought some relief to Texas, home to the largest wildfire in its history, according to officials.
The Smokehouse Creek Fire in Texas expanded to over 1 million acres, making it the largest recorded wildfire in the state, surpassing the East Amarillo Complex fire in 2006.
(With inputs from agencies)
