Residents sue Union Pacific for allegedly igniting Rowena Fire

“We have an investigator who’s on scene right now. He’s gathered extensive information and is continuing to gather extensive information from security cameras, from the train, from eyewitnesses,” said Waldref. “We do have very strong pieces of evidence.” While Oregon’s Department of Forestry determined the fire was human-caused, the agency has yet to pinpoint an exact source. Union Pacific denied fault in a statement, but the lawsuit asserts that “superheated particles” emitted by the train sparked dry brush and vegetation adjacent to the tracks, subsequently engulfing Sevenmile Hill at a rapid pace.

Once in the discovery process, Fruchter and Waldref expect to find proof of negligence by examining internal records and materials held by the railroad company, including failure to manage nearby vegetation, properly operate brake systems, oversee employees and use “track warning systems” that allow for quick emergency response.

“The railroad is never going to admit culpability,” said Fruchter. “They’re accountable to their owners and their shareholders, and so the language that they understand is having to write a check to a community they’ve harmed.”

For those that sign on, Singleton Schreiber plans to calculate and pursue damages on an individual basis rather than, as typical in class action lawsuits, split any potential settlement money equally among all plaintiffs. The people of Rowena each have different circumstances: homeowners and renters, insured versus uninsured; those that lost none, some or all of their possessions.

“Everything was lost. Everything,” said Monica Smith, a renter who works in home remodeling and furniture restoration. “My dad’s ashes were in there, and the way we make a living, all of our tools — gone. It makes you humble.”

“These aren’t people who can just go rent a house in town. They don’t have $2,500, they have $500 and they’ve been living on $500, and now it’s gone,” said Jack Garvin, whose house fortunately survived. “Some of these people have nothing, and nobody has familiarity with being in a disaster.”

While several people decided to join the lawsuit that evening, others were skeptical. Many asked about Singleton Schreiber’s other local case related to the Tunnel 5 Fire, which consumed over 500 acres and burned 10 structures in Underwood two summers ago. Even though a state investigation proved that Burlington Northern Santa Fe, railway owners on the Washington side, started the fire, Singleton Schreiber hasn’t been able to reach a settlement agreement or bring the lawsuit to trial.

“We’re getting pizza and a sales spiel, as far as I’m concerned,” said another resident during the meeting. “What’s going to be different for this fire, except that we don’t have bluff homes in Underwood that are worth a million and a half dollars?”

Fruchter and Waldref acknowledged that moving through federal court is a very slow, frustrating process. They noted that Singleton Schreiber has resources available to help folks move forward with insurance claims in conjunction with the lawsuit and requires no upfront fees for services.

The firm is seeking double the plaintiff’s property and economic damages from Union Pacific, and if it’s successful in recovering that amount, Singleton Schreiber gets one-third of the total payout after accounting for expenses. Based in California with an office in Spokane, the firm has helped more than 30,000 fire victims get back more than $3 billion, according to Singleton Schreiber’s website.

“We don’t control everything about the pace of litigation,” said Fruchter. “We can control when we file, we can control when we provide discovery to the other side and we can tell the court that we need a trial date as soon as possible because there are people who are hurting in the community who need justice.”