County Sues Oil Firm Over Peat Bog Fire
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A $1-billion lawsuit blames an oil firm for the Vandenberg Air Force Base peat bog fire that smoldered for months and left communities socked in a smoky haze.
The suit filed by Santa Barbara County claims the Lompoc Oil Field, owned by Nuevo Energy Co. and run by Torch Operating Co., should have cleared vegetation as required by law.
State fire investigators determined the Sept. 13, 2000, Harris Grade Fire started when sparks from a power pole ignited dry brush in the Lompoc Oil Field near Vandenberg Village.
The fire burned across 9,700 acres and ignited an underground fire in a peat bog that took a year to put out.
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