People in Lytton, led by a woman who lost her home, her belongings and her cat in the deadly fire on June 30, are suing CN and CP Rail.

Carel Moiseiwitsch filed the civil suit today in BC Supreme Court. The notice of civil claim says it is brought forward on behalf of “all… persons with loss of real or personal property or business losses in the Lytton fire.”

In the suit, Moiseiwitsch identifies as a visual artist with a home business, whose home was worth at least $300,000 when it was destroyed by wildfire.

The lawsuit alleges the two rail companies “ought to have known” it was unsafe to operate freight trains on the day that the Lytton Creek fire broke out. On that afternoon, the temperature was above 45 degrees Celsius, the fire risk was extreme and wind gusts reached 71 kilometres per hour.

The suit also says neither rail companies took preventative measures to reduce the chance of starting a wildfire.

Speaking on behalf of Moiseiwitsch, lawyer Jason Gratl said he hopes the case can be certified as class action.

“A significant reason for bringing a class-action proceeding rather than an individual proceeding is to modify the behaviour of the defendant. To instill a sense of corporate social responsibility,” Gratl said, adding a class-action suit would be on behalf of people affected who can’t afford to sue.

“We have very compelling, eye-witness evidence, that the fire started while the train was in the process of crossing the CN bridge across the Fraser River. And it matches up with the burn pattern… We’ve heard from some witnesses that the train that sparked the fire was pulling coal that was on its way overseas, to burned either for steel manufacturing or for power generation.”

None of the allegations have been proven in court.

CN and CP Rail share a track heading southbound from just north of Lytton to Mission, in the Fraser Valley. In the spring, CN Rail began hauling coal from the East Kootenays to the Neptune Terminal in North Vancouver.

In a brief statement, CN Rail said to NL News: “CN is in receipt of the filing. An investigation into the cause of the Lytton fire remains ongoing.”

CP Rail has not responded to a request for comment.

The cause of the Lytton Creek fire has not been determined, although officials have said it was likely human caused. The blaze has now burned more than 84,000 hectares of land.

Lytton remains evacuated and about 90 per cent of the village burned down during the fire, while two people were killed. The fire caused an estimated $78 million in insurable losses in the community.

– with files from Marcella Bernardo of NEWS 1130