PG&E issues report on why it didn't shut off power before Camp fire

In the days before the state's deadliest wildfire erupted near a PG&E Corp. power line during a windstorm, the company kept a close eye on the weather, warned customers it might shut off electricity in the area, and finally decided conditions weren't bad enough to warrant it, according to a report filed Tuesday with state regulators.

The report from PG&E also shows that the giant utility company made its final decision not to cut electricity more than six hours after the Camp fire began on Nov. 8 in the Sierra Nevada foothills of Butte County. Pushed by strong winds, the fire leveled the town of Paradise, killing at least 88 people.

Even if PG&E had chosen to cut power, the company wouldn't have switched off the high-voltage transmission line that malfunctioned in Butte County minutes before the blaze began. That's because the utility owner's policy of switching off power when winds kick up applies only to local distribution wires.

The report may nonetheless add ammunition to lawsuits filed against PG&E by residents who lost loved ones and homes, blaming the company's equipment for starting the fire. No cause has been determined.

Strong winds can snap the wooden poles that support distribution lines, allowing live wires to fall into dry grass, triggering a blaze. Gusts also can cause parallel lines to sway close enough to each other that electrons jump from one to another, causing sparks that can fall into grass.

As wind-driven wildfires increase in the state, California utilities have resorted to shutting off certain power lines during periods of intense winds and low humidity. PG&E had resisted the idea for years but changed course after last year's devastating Wine Country fires, which killed 44. State investigators have blamed 17 of those 2017 fires on the company's equipment.

'We know how much our customers rely on electric service and would only consider temporarily turning off power as a last resort,' said PG&E spokesman Matt Nauman.