The Valley Fire burns in the Boise foothills on Oct. 4 in this photo taken from Southeast Boise. (Courtesy of Robbie Johnson/Idaho Department of Lands)
A power line touching the ground was found responsible for starting the Valley Fire that has burned 10,000 acres in the Boise foothills since igniting Oct. 4, according to the Idaho Department of Lands.
“As is common when a powerline comes into contact with the ground, multiple small fires occurred,” the Idaho Department of Lands said in a news release Monday afternoon. “Due to the extremely dry conditions, those smaller fires quickly grew together and into one large fire. We are in contact with the power company as they have been cooperative through this investigation process.”
During Tuesday’s Idaho State Board of Land Commissioners meeting, statewide elected officials discussed the Valley Fire and whether Idaho Power will be found financially liable for damages.
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“We just found out that Idaho Power was found responsible for the Valley Fire … but in the past when a private company has been found responsible, what has happened, what generally? Do we have another case like that similar to that and what has happened in the past?” Idaho Attorney General Raúl Labrador asked Idaho Department of Lands Director Dustin Miller during Tuesday’s Land Board meeting.
Miller and Idaho Department of Lands Fire Bureau Chief Josh Harvey told Labrador similar things have happened before.
“For years we always work directly with your deputies (in the Idaho Attorney General’s Office) to determine whether a fire is billable and it’s clear in code – negligence or a willful act,” Harvey said. “The term negligence, we always leave that to the attorneys to determine what that legally means. And if we have built a case based on the facts that negligence was present, and therefore making that fire a billable fire, we have exclusively billed for suppression cost alone, as code allows.”
“This case really isn’t a whole lot different than numerous other cases that we have had,” Harvey added. “So we will be working with … our legal staff on making that determination and their advice will determine where we go forward. We do have an extensive history of collecting on – whether its powerline fires, railroad fires, just a private citizen doing something negligent and causing a fire – we have an extensive history of collecting on those. But it does come down to the facts of what actually occurred and was the individual or entity responsible in some way for preventing that, or could it have been prevented and did they or did they not take steps to ensure everything was done to prevent that incident?”
Cross arm on Idaho Power pole broke, company says
Idaho Power officials acknowledged the report in a written statement issued Monday.
“The report states that a cross arm on an Idaho Power pole broke and likely caused an energized wire to contact the ground,” Idaho Power officials wrote. “The report found no evidence of rot or bug infestation and no visible alterations to the cross arm other than those necessary to support the line. Idaho Power inspected this line three times this year, including the cross arm that appears to have broken, and no issues were noted in either ground or helicopter inspections. As noted in the report, the fire did not damage any structures, vehicles, or equipment.”
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“Idaho Power acknowledges the conclusions of the Idaho Department of Lands report and remains committed to safely providing reliable, affordable energy to its customers,” Idaho Power officials added. “The company is grateful for the first responders who worked to quickly contain the Valley Fire and the patience of the customers who were impacted by the fire.”
An Idaho Power spokesperson declined additional comment on Tuesday and referred the Idaho Capital Sun to the company ‘ s written statement.
Containment of Valley Fire in Boise foothills estimated at 79%
On Tuesday, the Idaho Department of Lands reported the Valley Fire has burned 9,904 acres, with containment estimated at 79% and no structures lost. Department officials said there have been 168 people helping fight the wildfire.
“Through our mutual aid agreement with the Bureau of Land Management, fire resources provided an aggressive initial attack to this fire,” the Idaho Department of Lands said in Monday’s press release. “IDL as well as other interagency partners and local fire departments continue to support the ongoing suppression efforts.”
On Tuesday, Miller told Land Board members that the state continues to face a high risk of wildfire through October.
“It’s been one heck of a year for us, and we still have a number of ongoing fires, especially in southern Idaho,” Miller said, adding that about 1 million total acres have burned in wildfires in Idaho this year.
“A very warm and dry fall has prolonged (the) fire season – that’s kind of an understatement,” Miller added.
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