On Sept. 4, 2011, fire destroyed 23 homes in Steiner Ranch including the home that used to sit on this site. Last week, the Austin City Council approved a payment of up to $6.78 million to settle a lawsuit related to the fires.
Fires destroyed 23 homes in Steiner Ranch, Resulted in one fatality
By CASSIE MCKEE
Four Points News
At its Dec. 1 meeting, the Austin City Council approved a payment of up to $6.78 million to settle a lawsuit related to the 2011 Labor Day weekend fires in Steiner Ranch, which destroyed 23 homes and caused the death of Travis County Deputy Constable Kevin Aigner.
Over 19 plaintiffs filed more than 500 separate property damage, personal injury or wrongful death claims against the city, according to City of Austin Litigation Division Chief Meghan Riley.
Homeowners and insurance companies sued the city in November 2012, around the same time fire investigators determined the cause of the fire to be power lines maintained by Austin Energy.
Slack in electric lines led them to touch each other in high winds Sept. 4, 2011, fire officials said. Electricity began arcing, creating molten bits of metal that fell to the ground and ignited dry vegetation, the report concluded.
Corporal Aigner had served with the Travis County Precinct 2 Constable’s Office for 12 years and had served in law enforcement for a total of 15 years. According to his wrongful death lawsuit, Aigner, who was 38, suffered a hemorrhagic stroke after assisting with the wildfire aftermath effort. He left behind a wife and four children.
Under the terms of the settlement, the city will pay $6.425 million to a group of subrogation insurance carriers in exchange for a release of all claims. Additionally, the city will pay $150,000 to a group of non-subrogation plaintiffs that would settle all claims against the city, according to Riley.
“Because this litigation is covered under the city’s insurance policy, the city’s insurance carrier will reimburse the city all but $2 million for its payments made as part of the litigation,” Riley told the council.
The council also approved a payment of up to $205,500 in attorney fees and legal costs associated with the defense of the case.
The council approved the settlement by a vote a vote of 7-1, with District 6 council member Don Zimmerman voting against. Zimmerman said he voted against the settlement because the council did not have any time to discuss the settlement terms prior to the vote.
“The first that I heard of this settlement negotiation was from the lawyers to approve it,” Zimmerman said. “That’s why I voted no.”
He said the council should have had the opportunity to discuss the issue in executive session.
“When I got into office, I was just astounded at how city bureaucrats make decisions without consulting council,” he said. “It’s a multi-million decision that was done without the consent or consultation of elected council. The lawyers should be fired. They’re making decisions on behalf of elected representatives without consulting the elected representatives. By the time you find out what they’re doing, it’s too late to do anything about it.”
He said for the remainder of his term, he will vote against any other settlements that are done outside the review of city council.
During the council meeting, District 7 council member Leslie Pool asked why the settlement was not discussed in executive session.
“We sent council a memo outlining the history of the litigation as well as the settlement terms,” Riley responded.
The city had attempted to have the wildfire lawsuits dismissed in 2014, but a state appeals court denied that request.