Butte County >> The first class action lawsuit over the Oroville Dam emergency spillway crisis has been filed against the state Department of Water Resources by the Los Angeles-based trial law firm McNicholas & McNicholas LLP and Frantz Law Group.

The law firms announced the lawsuit Friday on behalf of Francis Bechtel, Jacob Klein and Mary Watson and the proposed group of 188,000 residents ordered to evacuate their homes on Feb. 12.

Patrick McNicholas, partner at McNicholas & McNicholas LLP, said negligence by DWR and years of inadequate maintenance of the dam were to blame for what unfolded in February.

“The design, construction defects and flaws have been propagated by DWR during maintenance of the spillway,” McNicholas said in the press release.

“State officials didn’t even enter the spillway channel during the last two inspections. DWR’s conduct in the operation of the Oroville Dam was a substantial factor in causing harm to the plaintiffs who, in addition to having been unable to use and enjoy their property during the evacuation, continue to be concerned about the stigma associated with the dam failure, the potential for future failures and the implications on property values.”

Representatives for the law firms were not reachable by phone Friday afternoon.