HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania’s distressed capital city filed for bankruptcy Wednesday, citing “imminent jeopardy” from lawsuits related to a debt-saddled municipal incinerator and setting up a power struggle between the mayor and City Council.

The federal petition for Chapter 9 bankruptcy, being sought to help Harrisburg get out from under crushing debt, listed about $458 million in creditors and claims and six pending legal actions by creditors.

Municipal bankruptcies are rare, with only a few dozen filed in the past three decades.