A jury has decided that two utility companies hold some liability in one of the largest wildfires in New Mexico's recorded history.
Jurors gave their verdict Wednesday in Bernalillo following a weeks-long trial that centered on whether Jemez Mountains Electric Cooperative and Tri-State Generation and Transmission Inc. did enough to prevent the Las Conchas fire in 2011.
The jury found JMEC was 75 percent negligent for the wildfire, Tri-State 20 percent and the U.S. Forest Service 5 percent.
Possible damage amounts will be determined at a later trial.
The blaze started when an aspen tree fell onto power lines that stretched through national forest land in the Jemez Mountains.
JMEC operated and maintained the power lines. Tri-State provides the cooperative with electricity and was also named as a defendant.
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