Multnomah County sues fossil fuel companies for nearly $52 billion over heat dome

Multnomah County is seeking nearly $52 billion in damages and future costs for climate adaptation in a lawsuit that filed Thursday against more than a dozen fossil fuel companies to hold them accountable for the unprecedented heat dome event in 2021.

Lawyers for the county are moving forward with a lawsuit against 17 oil and gas companies alleging that the burning of their fossil fuel products, which leads to greenhouse gas emissions that are warming the planet, was a substantial contributor to a heat dome event roughly two years ago. Ninety-six people died across Oregon as a result of the heat dome, with the majority living in Multnomah County.

The lawsuit claims the fossil fuel companies “rapaciously sell fossil fuel products and deceptively promote them as harmless to the environment,” leading to disasters like the heat dome.