Overview
- The civil complaint was filed in San Francisco Superior Court on July 24, 2026 and seeks damages and repairs from more than a dozen defendants for the warehouse blast.
- The July 1, 2025 explosion at an Esparto warehouse killed seven workers and burned nearby land, and plaintiffs say the deaths were preventable because officials failed to act.
- The lawsuit names the State of California, the Office of the State Fire Marshal, Yolo County and multiple local agencies, former Yolo County Sheriff Tom Lopez, former lieutenant Samuel Machado, State Fire Marshal Daniel Berlant, and private fireworks companies.
- Plaintiffs allege workers were paid in cash, forced to work in extreme heat without safety gear or training, and that inspections and enforcement were repeatedly ignored despite seizures and raids dating back to 2023.
- The civil case broadens accountability beyond the criminal prosecutions already charging multiple people in the case, and could force findings of government negligence even as some agencies decline to comment because of pending litigation.