Tri-City Sun

A Michigan couple affected by the Edenville Dam failure has filed a lawsuit against the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) for its part in the catastrophe, Bridge Michigan reported.  

Cathy and Dan Allen, a Sanford couple, alleged that their home on Sanford Lake suffered extreme damage due to the Edenville Dam failure, which took place May 19. 

The couple alleges in their claim that they suffered $1.25 million in damages when the dam failed to hold back water, which consequently caused $200 million worth of damages to over 2,500 Midland, Gladwin and Saginaw county homes. 

FERC, which is the national regulator for power-generating dams, is allegedly partially to blame for the failure due to its allowance of Boyce Hydro to generate energy from the dam and failure to ensure that the company would manage the maintenance of the dam. 

Additionally, the Allens argue that FERC did not monitor the dam to ensure that there were not weaknesses that would lead to its failure.

The Allens are being represented by Michael Pitt of Pitt, McGehee, Palmer & Rivers of Royal Oak. 

Pitt, McGehee, Palmer & Rivers is the firm that was involved in the Flint water crisis and is currently involved in the lawsuits being filed by victims of flooding incidents. 

FERC chairman Neil Chatterjee stated on June 18 that his agency failed to do a financial review of Boyce Hydro prior to giving Boyce a license, claiming that at the time of the transfer, there were no warning signs that the company would be unable to carry out its duties to keep the dam running as expected.

The Allens are awaiting FERC’s response, which has a six-month expiration window. If the agency fails to reply in a timely manner or denies the Allens’ claim, they will then have to proceed to a federal district court.