Firestorm victims launch suit against Singapore Power

Victims of Australia's deadly 2009 firestorm have launched legal action against a Singapore power firm alleging poorly-maintained electrical wires sparked the blaze, reports said on Saturday.

Lawyers representing almost 600 people lodged a class action in Victoria's Supreme Court against Singapore Power for allegedly failing to maintain an ageing line, which fell and started the Feb 7 fire at Kilmore East.

It was the deadliest blaze of 'Black Saturday', Australia's worst natural disaster, claiming 119 of the 173 lives lost. Legal firm Maurice Blackburn said the suit could be worth hundreds of millions of dollars.

They have heard strong evidence at the Royal Commission (into the fires) that Singapore Power could have taken a number of steps to prevent the devastating Kilmore East-Kinglake bushfire. The electricity distribution companies are commercial enterprises that have a responsibility to ensure that public safety is not compromised simply in order to keep costs down. Singapore Power's failures have had very tragic consequences.

The action currently has 598 plaintiffs but could grow to as many as 1,300, including people who lost family members in the fire, suffered physical injuries and lost property, or had ongoing psychological damage, The Age said. It will allege Singapore Power failed to fit a A$10 (S$12) anti-vibration device to guard against metal fatigue and that the circuit-breaker system was not adequate for a dry, windy, fire-prone area.

The 1.1km single-strand line, one of the longest in Victoria, was only checked every five years and rust and wire deterioration could not be detected by ground crews, the case will also claim. Unusually for an Australian civil case, Maurice Blackburn has asked that it be decided by a jury instead of a judge. The Black Saturday fires rushed into small communities with little warning, killing 173 residents as they sheltered in their homes, or fled in cars. Entire towns were razed, reducing more than 2,000 homes to ash.