In connection with PG&E’s probation for the deadly San Bruno explosion in 2010, more terms were added to the company’s probation after PG&E was blamed for lethal Northern California wildfires. PG&E pushed back on the new terms and asked that they be modified.
According to a recent New York Times article, the tower that caused the Camp Fire was a 99-year old transmission tower. PG&E noted in a form filed with federal regulators that the useful life of such towers expired at 75 years.
After recently discovering PG&E documents which confirm the company knew about the potential for equipment failure that ultimately caused the 2018 Camp Fire, NCFL Attorney Mike Danko told KRON4:
Internal PG&E Emails Show that PG&E Rated the Transmission Line that Started the Camp Fire as Having a “High” Risk of Failure
CHICO, CA – Danko Meredith, Gibbs Law Group, and Corey, Luzaich, de Ghetaldi & Riddle, a coalition of law firms known as Northern California Fire Lawyers, are in possession of documents showing that as early as 2014, PG&E knew that the towers on the Caribou-Palermo line – the transmission line responsible for starting the November 2018 Camp Fire – had a “high” likelihood of failure. In a February 25, 2014, email, PG&E employees admitted the line posed a risk of failure but figured any resulting fire would probably be doused by rain:
Despite filing for bankruptcy in January, the company has asked the bankruptcy judge to approve payment of $235 million in bonuses to employees in 2019. PG&E issued a statement that bonuses will be paid if workers meet safety and operational goals, but court documents indicate that meeting financial goals rather than safety are the priority for bonuses.