Edison International said much of the damage from the mudslides that swept through the coastal town of Montecito last year was the result of poorly designed and maintained debris basins for which local governments are responsible, Bloomberg News reported. The parent company and its Southern California Edison Co. utility filed a cross-complaint Friday against the City and the County of Santa Barbara, among other public entities, saying that a substantial part of liability for the damages should be shifted to government entities responsible for the inadequate infrastructure. Edison is blamed for the mudslides because the company’s equipment may have ignited the wildfires that led to them. “With this cross-complaint we seek to ensure that there is a comprehensive review of the role many parties may have played in the large and tragic losses suffered by the community during the Montecito mudslides,” Edison said in a statement.
