A lawsuit filed in April 2024 by numerous landowners and agricultural businesses affected by the Road 739 fire remains pending in Furnas County District Court. More recently, a similar lawsuit by an insurance company, originally filed around the same time in Gosper County District Court, has been joined with the lawsuit in Furnas County District Court.
The joined lawsuit by the landowners, agricultural businesses and Farm Bureau Property and Casualty Insurance Company against Twin Valleys Public Power District, alleges the utility’s negligence caused the massive Road 739 Fire that burned about 35,000 acres in southern Gosper County on April 7, 2022. Farm Bureau says it paid claims to policyholders who suffered losses in the wildfire and is seeking to recover those costs through this action.
According to the lawsuit, the fire started when a dead ponderosa pine tree fell into power lines owned and maintained by Twin Valleys PPD during what the National Weather Service had identified as extremely critical fire weather conditions. The insurer alleges the utility failed to properly inspect and manage hazardous vegetation near its electrical equipment, allowing the tree to come into contact with energized power lines and ignite the wildfire. The suit claims those failures resulted in extensive damage to homes, personal property, businesses and agricultural operations across the fire area.
The parties told the court the claims have been globally settled for the Nebraska Political Subdivisions Tort Claims Act maximum of $5 million. Under the agreement, the consolidated case will proceed in Furnas County District Court, where Twin Valleys PPD is expected to seek permission to deposit the settlement funds with the court for distribution among the plaintiffs through further agreements or court order. A judge has approved the request to consolidate the cases into a single Furnas County action for all future proceedings.
