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The following has been a "copy and paste" from the Sacramento Bee. I can't provide a link, no idea how.
Our home survived, so it won't matter much to me. But there are thousands of fire victims in Paradise-Magalia who never had insurance, mostly renters, some homeowners, and this verdict could help them with their lawsuits to get full or partial compensation.
"It’s official. Pacific Gas & Electric caused the Camp Fire.
State fire officials announced Wednesday a six-month instigation has determined what many thought. PG&E power lines in high hills of Butte County ignited the devastating blaze that destroyed nearly 19,000 buildings and killed 85 people, almost all in one frantic November day.
The announcement came during a whirlwind of news at the state Capitol involving the troubled utility company.
Gov. Gavin Newsom on Wednesday escalated his criticism of the utility, blasting it in a court filing, for “mismanagement, misconduct and failed efforts to improve a woeful safety culture.”
Meanwhile, the utility’s new CEO Bill Johnson was at the Capitol, vowing during testimony at an Assembly committee to bring “a focus on fundamentals” back to a company teetering on a financial precipice.
Johnson said the Cal Fire findings were expected. “I have made the assumption when I got here that PG&E equipment caused the fire. It’s a disappointment that this happened.”
PG&E, which is now in bankruptcy, due in part to pending wildfire legal costs, acknowledged several months ago that power line problems at the site of the fire ignition point, citing a faulty hook on a tower.
Read Next
CAPITOL-ALERT
Gavin Newsom blasts PG&E in court filing: ‘Mismanagement, misconduct and failed efforts’
MAY 15, 2019 2:17 PM
The Camp Fire was the worst in state history, destroying an estimated 90 percent of the hillside Butte County town of Paradise, leaving tens of thousands homeless. The fire also ravaged much of nearby towns of Concow and Magalia.
In its announcement, Cal Fire said the fire started Nov. 8, 2019 near the community of Pulga. “After a very meticulous and thorough investigation, Cal Fire has determined that the Camp Fire was caused by electrical transmission lines owned and operated by Pacific Gas and Electricity located in the Pulga area.”
Last edited by mgforshort; 05-15-2019 at 06:24 PM..
The following has been a "copy and paste" from the Sacramento Bee. I can't provide a link, no idea how.
Our home survived, so it won't matter much to me. But there are thousands of fire victims in Paradise-Magalia who never had insurance, mostly renters, some homeowners, and this verdict could help them with their lawsuits to get full or partial compensation.
"It’s official. Pacific Gas & Electric caused the Camp Fire.
State fire officials announced Wednesday a six-month instigation has determined what many thought. PG&E power lines in high hills of Butte County ignited the devastating blaze that destroyed nearly 19,000 buildings and killed 85 people, almost all in one frantic November day.
The announcement came during a whirlwind of news at the state Capitol involving the troubled utility company.
Gov. Gavin Newsom on Wednesday escalated his criticism of the utility, blasting it in a court filing, for “mismanagement, misconduct and failed efforts to improve a woeful safety culture.”
Meanwhile, the utility’s new CEO Bill Johnson was at the Capitol, vowing during testimony at an Assembly committee to bring “a focus on fundamentals” back to a company teetering on a financial precipice.
Johnson said the Cal Fire findings were expected. “I have made the assumption when I got here that PG&E equipment caused the fire. It’s a disappointment that this happened.”
PG&E, which is now in bankruptcy, due in part to pending wildfire legal costs, acknowledged several months ago that power line problems at the site of the fire ignition point, citing a faulty hook on a tower.
Read Next
CAPITOL-ALERT
Gavin Newsom blasts PG&E in court filing: ‘Mismanagement, misconduct and failed efforts’
MAY 15, 2019 2:17 PM
The Camp Fire was the worst in state history, destroying an estimated 90 percent of the hillside Butte County town of Paradise, leaving tens of thousands homeless. The fire also ravaged much of nearby towns of Concow and Magalia.
In its announcement, Cal Fire said the fire started Nov. 8, 2019 near the community of Pulga. “After a very meticulous and thorough investigation, Cal Fire has determined that the Camp Fire was caused by electrical transmission lines owned and operated by Pacific Gas and Electricity located in the Pulga area.”
mg, a woman I know who lost everything told me that PG&E were raising their rates to cover the costs of reimbursing home owners for their losses. Is that true? Or did she mean for the new lines they have to lay. I can imagine them trying to do it but would they get away with it? Do you know the facts? Usually it is the insurance companies who raise their rates to cover their reimbursement expenses. Thank you.
mg, a woman I know who lost everything told me that PG&E were raising their rates to cover the costs of reimbursing home owners for their losses. Is that true? Or did she mean for the new lines they have to lay. I can imagine them trying to do it but would they get away with it? Do you know the facts? Usually it is the insurance companies who raise their rates to cover their reimbursement expenses. Thank you.
I've heard the same thing. I have PG&E for gas only (my city provides electric) so I don't know if a rate increase will occur for the gas customers too. I think we've already got a built-in reimbursement rate after the San Bruno disaster. I'd love to get a definitive answer, too.
PG&E is definitely raising rates. We all (who have their service) received notice by mail that our rates would be increasing later this year. Probably just in time to see a bit of a rise in our winter rates. According to the document, the rate increase would amount to about $3.50 per month. We'll see, though. And yes, it was stated that the rise was due to the costs the company incurred with the Camp Fire and most likely the one prior to that in Santa Rosa.
I saw a bit of the testimony Bill Johnson gave today. As I watched him saying he would do everything possible to make the company reliable once again, I kept thinking .... "Easy for you to say. You go home to your palatial home with all your creature comforts while others are still struggling." I'm sorry. I live by the motto that I'll believe it when I see it.
PG&E is definitely raising rates. We all (who have their service) received notice by mail that our rates would be increasing later this year. Probably just in time to see a bit of a rise in our winter rates. According to the document, the rate increase would amount to about $3.50 per month. We'll see, though. And yes, it was stated that the rise was due to the costs the company incurred with the Camp Fire and most likely the one prior to that in Santa Rosa.
I saw a bit of the testimony Bill Johnson gave today. As I watched him saying he would do everything possible to make the company reliable once again, I kept thinking .... "Easy for you to say. You go home to your palatial home with all your creature comforts while others are still struggling." I'm sorry. I live by the motto that I'll believe it when I see it.
Thank you. Was it due to the cost of replacing lines or reimbursing customers? I just wondered because the latter is usually an insurance matter. The former would be PG&E's cost. Amazing how hot those fires get. My friend who lost everything lost things you'd never thing would burn. Be ruined and beyond restoration, yes, bu to totally disintegrate so that she never found even signs of them.
Well, we count blessings. She and the cat survived. Life is precious.
Bill Johnson was hired at a salary of 2.5 million (yes, million) dollars. He was the CEO of Tenessey Valley Authority.
He was speaking on television and called PG&E as TV, the place where he is coming from.
Small slip of the tongue.
The former CEO resigned and they gave her a $ 1 million dollar severance package.
I heard the rates are going up in average by $ 22 a month, we can live with that.
On the other hand some consumer advocates are concerned with the rates going up double or triple. If that happens, Butte County is on the way to become a ghost town.
The biggest hurdle of rebuilding - re populating Paradise is the lack of contractors and lack of affordable property insurance.
There are many homes for sale, ours included, and prices are dropping daily.
All I want is to get back the money we spent and some extra for moving costs. I doubt it will happen.
By Southern California standards our realestate is still cheap, but we don't have the jobs and amazing climate of San Diego or Orange County.
Our tap water (our home, kitchen sink) was tested and no benzene was found. Nevertheless, the water company is considering to replace main water lines at a cost of hundreds of million dollars because there are some homes where benzene is present.
That alone should be charged to the PG&E profits.
If PG&E could be forced to cover water related costs and offer homeowners insurance (under a subsidiary) at affordable rates, our town would recover.
Even so, it will take 15-20 years and all the character and charm of Paradise will be gone.
Modular homes, mobile homes, track homes; in other words, another Anaheim with more trees and warmer summers.
I have been an enthusiastic promoter of Paradise-Magalia here on City Data, and now I wish I could take it all back.
Last edited by mgforshort; 05-16-2019 at 10:34 AM..
Thank you. Was it due to the cost of replacing lines or reimbursing customers? I just wondered because the latter is usually an insurance matter. The former would be PG&E's cost. Amazing how hot those fires get. My friend who lost everything lost things you'd never thing would burn. Be ruined and beyond restoration, yes, bu to totally disintegrate so that she never found even signs of them.
Well, we count blessings. She and the cat survived. Life is precious.
What, the coming rise in rates? Although he (Johnson) didn't come right out and say it, I'm sure the raise in rates is to somehow re-coup the loss of money incurred from the lawsuits. For years, they've neglected maintenance on lines and transformers and got away with it because nothing as devastating as these fires happened. Also, some of their employees aren't very honest about the work they're supposed to do. I'll give you an example.
Earlier this year, an employee from PG&E came to my door. She said she needed to inspect the gas meter. Apparently, there's a "potential" problem if meters are too close to crawlspace vents. Something about fumes getting into the house. I don't know. Anyway, this problem was supposed to be fixed after the San Bruno explosion in 2010. It wasn't. Nine years passed but since these last two raging wildfires (both attributed to PG&E's negligence), they are stepping up their inspections and repairs of these potential problems.
She installed a little pipe diverting the fumes as seen in gray here.
Before she left, she said that someone from PG&E will be coming soon to move the entire meter. Okay, fine. What I found troubling is that she said she was following up on inspections done in 2015. The thing is, no one ever inspected my meter in 2015. She said it was noted in her records that an inspection "was done" in 2015 but I told her that no one from PG&E was here in 2015. Then she hit me with something I always suspected but never had confirmed. The person claiming to have done the inspection, lied and falsified the report. She said it happens. Yeah, I know it happens and it's disgusting that it does. But that's what happens in business. People lie and deceive. It's just a fact. They'll do anything to protect their bottom line and shareholders.
The other disgusting thing is that consumers are at the mercy of companies like PG&E. In this state, they own the lines, the equipment and everything and we're all at their mercy.
The PUC needs to stop letting them (PGE) raise rates on everyday people, while they still have billions in assets & are on criminal probation since the San Bruno explosion. Maybe if the fines & lawsuits affected their bottom line, ( instead of making everyone pay) they would be a better provider. We lost everything in the fire, & a neighbor down the street, perished.
I was raised in Hungary, a communist country in the fifties and sixties, and to claim that I have any sympathy for socialism is NOT true.
But now, after witnessing our county half burned down, sometimes I think nationalizing utilities and healthcare is the answer.
When the president of the country gets paid $ 400 K there is no justification for paying 2.5 million to the CEO of a company with a history of incompetence.
The following is a copy and paste from "The Sacramento Bee" 2/22/2019:
PG&E canceled $130 million in bonuses to thousands of employees Friday, telling them it couldn’t justify the payments when wildfire survivors are facing “significantly greater” hardships.
They won't be getting $130 million in bonuses. Instead they will be getting nearly double that amount. $235 million spread over about 10,000 employees. Around 23K per employee. Not a bad gig if you can get it.
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And yes, it was stated that the rise was due to the costs the company incurred with the Camp Fire and most likely the one prior to that in Santa Rosa. 
