More information has come to light about the nature of the Pacific Gas and Electric Company’s alleged involvement in the California Camp Fire of 2018, which the Sacramento Bee says was the deadliest fire in the state’s history.

Reportedly, Cal Fire had conducted an investigation that determined how PG&E’s equipment started the fire. Now, a Camp Fire update provides more information on how this played out.

According to Vox, an investigation conducted by the California Public Utilities Commission, a C-hook — a piece of equipment that keeps the wires away from the tower that holds up power lines — broke. This allegedly caused a  jumper cable to touch the tower, causing sparks. These sparks then fell on dry ground, starting the fire that burned for 17 days and killed 85 people.

 This information about the damaged equipment related to the start of the fire was released in a 2018 financial result statement from PG&E, says the Sacramento Bee’s Camp Fire update.

According to investigators, there had been recurring problems on the equipment, but PG&E had not examined the problem since 2001. Allegedly, this lack of inspection was a violation of PG&E’s own policy “requiring claiming inspection on towers where recurring problems exist.” 

Investigators stated that because the tower that was linked to the Camp Fire had shown “visible wear,” inspecting it as dictated by PG&E’s policy could have let PG&E employees find that the C-hook in question was failing, and replace it before it did fail. This allegedly would have prevented the Camp Fire. 

The Sacramento Bee states that PG&E has increased inspections of power lines, substations, and equipment in the last year, in an attempt to prevent fire fires. According to a statement by the company, they conducted “18 months of inspections in only 4 months.” 

Unfortunately, these newly-conducted inspections revealed hundreds of problems that could pose safety risks. 

In a financial Camp Fire update, Forbes explains that PG&E’s financial health has been severely affected by its alleged involvement in California’s fires. The company may face up to $30 billion in liability costs associated with its links to the 2018 California fires. To deal with these staggering costs, the company has had to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, which it did in January.

Additionally, the company’s stock has decreased in value, dropping in value by around 80 percent in the year. In around a week in December 2019, the company’s stock fell from around $11 to $7.70. Forbes explains that PG&E’s expenses went up around 79.7 percent in a year, as the company tries to handle wildfire-related expenses. 

Reportedly, PG&E has already faced around $11 billion in costs related to California wildfires. In another report on the issue published in February, the Sacramento Bee says that the company is expressing concerns that its liability may prohibit the company from continuing.

The company may reorganize itself, and will consider restructuring plans put forward from bondholders and wildfire victims. Experts anticipate that these plans will probably show fewer profits to equity holders, explains Forbes.

This article is not legal advice. It is presented
for informational purposes only.