The Paradise megafire - the future? (lawyers, construction, compensation)

[BeauCharles]

The Camp Fire and the Bear Fire back to back has made me totally rethink ever buying a home in the hills of California (or the West in general). When I bought in Oroville in 2010 I was looking at homes in Paradise as well. Prettier, cooler. I ended up buying in Oroville because of several elderly family members needing help at the time, but now I'm very glad I did. Even the foothill portions of Oroville can get dicey nowadays - they've been under evacuation warnings and orders several times in the the past few years.

[recycled]

I am surprised that the re-building in Paradise has taken off so strong. In the 1980s and 1990s, my mother and step-father lived in a small home on a side street near Pentz Rd, just west of the hospital. In the 2000s, they left and moved to Tucson and lived out their final years there. I visited them often in Paradise, when I was living in the SF Bay area. I liked exploring the endless back roads that ran far up into the Sierra foothills above Stirling City and Inskip. The old house where my mother & step-father previously lived was burned in the Camp Fire, like all of the other homes on their block.

I wonder how difficult or expensive fire insurance would be these days in Paradise and other similar situated towns in the Sierra foothills (near or in heavily forested areas). The drought this year in many parts of CA and the southwest is going to move this topic front and center again if the fire season is bad.

[Ruth4Truth]

Later Tuesday, Butte County Dist. Atty. Mike Ramsey is expected to release a long-awaited report detailing the corporate misconduct that ignited the November 2018 wildfire that destroyed Paradise, Calif.,

Any follow up on this, in the article on post #31? What was the corporate misconduct that ignited the Paradise wildfire?

What I remember reported about the fire in the first days afterward, was that PG # E wanted to shut down service, due to high winds and very dry terrain, but homeowners begged them not to. (There were residents who needed their fridges to work, due to medicinal needs.) So the guy in charge of shutting of the service relented.

[mgforshort]

There was a transmission tower near Pulga, CA. The high-voltage lines were connected to the top of the tower by steel clamps. The clamp in question was about 100 years old and corroded. An inspection recommended replacing all clamps, but it wasn't completed to save expenses. When the clamp broke apart in a windstorm the transmission line fell to the ground and ignited the bush under the tower. In a matter of minutes the heavy wind carried the flames and the apocalypse began. Paradise might be rebuilt, but it never will be the same.

The PSPS - Public safety power shutoff - is always debated. The longest we had last year was 4.5 days. With 2 different generators in our home we live through it without any major hassles. Generators are either expensive, our big one cost $ 7,800, or a big hassle to maintain with the gas cans and extension cords for the smaller units. Imagine an older man or a lady in her eighties going to the gas station with 2-3 gas cans and dragging it home. Then fill up the unit, check the oil, pull the starter, set up the extension cords - that is difficult for some people. Our big Generac on NG cost $ 2.50 per hour, or $ 30 a day if we only use it on-and-off. I asked PG&E to reimburse us for the extra cost, but they thought I was kidding.

The solution is bury the lines underground or clear all trees and bushes under the lines. Either one takes time, and expensive, so PG&E isn't in a big rush to get it done.

[JGC97]

Great comments mgforshort PG&E was penny wise and pound foolish. Although the suits at the top didn't have their lifestyle changed which is disgusting. They should have to experience the same as all those who lost every possession they own, turn their world upside down and bury the dead. I have nothing but disdain for that corporation.

[Ruth4Truth]

Originally Posted by mgforshort

There was a transmission tower near Pulga, CA. The high-voltage lines were connected to the top of the tower by steel clamps. The clamp in question was about 100 years old and corroded. An inspection recommended replacing all clamps, but it wasn't completed to save expenses. When the clamp broke apart in a windstorm the transmission line fell to the ground and ignited the bush under the tower. In a matter of minutes the heavy wind carried the flames and the apocalypse began. Paradise might be rebuilt, but it never will be the same.

The PSPS - Public safety power shutoff - is always debated. The longest we had last year was 4.5 days. With 2 different generators in our home we live through it without any major hassles. Generators are either expensive, our big one cost $ 7,800, or a big hassle to maintain with the gas cans and extension cords for the smaller units. Imagine an older man or a lady in her eighties going to the gas station with 2-3 gas cans and dragging it home. Then fill up the unit, check the oil, pull the starter, set up the extension cords - that is difficult for some people. Our big Generac on NG cost $ 2.50 per hour, or $ 30 a day if we only use it on-and-off. I asked PG&E to reimburse us for the extra cost, but they thought I was kidding.

The solution is bury the lines underground or clear all trees and bushes under the lines. Either one takes time, and expensive, so PG&E isn't in a big rush to get it done.

OMG! Just...omg.

[evening sun]

Originally Posted by Ruth4Truth

OMG! Just...omg.

For years, PGE was cutting corners on maintenance, to pad the bottom line. And CEO huge bonus. One thing that has not yet been done, is to stop allowing them to raise their rates every time they have to pay a hefty fine. They are on record as being Corporate Felons.

I wish the PUC would stop rubber stamping the rate raise, just because they (PGE) got fined again for another safety violation, or sued over another disaster.

[Ruth4Truth]

Originally Posted by evening sun

For years, PGE was cutting corners on maintenance, to pad the bottom line. And CEO huge bonus. One thing that has not yet been done, is to stop allowing them to raise their rates every time they have to pay a hefty fine. They are on record as being Corporate Felons.

I wish the PUC would stop rubber stamping the rate raise, just because they (PGE) got fined again for another safety violation, or sued over another disaster.

I saw a similar comment earlier in the thread, but I had no idea of the backstory, until now.

And yeah, what is with all these CEO's giving themselves cushy pay increases periodically, from the profits made from workers'' increased efficiency and tech advances? Why is their ever-increasing 6-figure pay never enough, but workers are expected to schlep along on not much more than 1980's pay? (While entire municipalities literally burn and ratepayers end up homeless at their own expense as homeowner's insurance companies collapse.)



"Please, sir, more gruel?"

[mgforshort]

If you think PG&E is unethical, wait until you learn about the "compensation" the fire victims supposed to get.

I'm not complaining for myself, our home survived and our Hartford Insurance covered the small damages. For us Hartford went "above and beyond", they really did. But there were thousands living in trailers, mobile homes, old houses without insurance and they lost everything. Many are homeless now or live at the charity of family members and friends.

A former neighbor who lost his house and moved to Idaho sent me the following in an email.

"A KQED investigation found that while they waited, a special Fire Victim Trust in charge of compensating survivors racked up $51 million in overhead costs last year. During that same period, the Trust disbursed just $7 million to fire victims – less than 0.1% of the $13.5 billion promised – according to an analysis of federal bankruptcy court filings, court transcripts and correspondence between staff of the Fire Victim Trust and the victims themselves.

During its first year of operation, the Trust spent nearly 90% of its funds on overhead, while fire victims waited for help, KQED found."

[mgforshort]

Here is more:

Representatives for the Fire Victim Trust declined to be interviewed. An annual report filed in federal bankruptcy court last week by its trustee, John Trotter, reported $38.7 million spent on financial professionals, claims administrators, consultants and other operating expenses between July 1 and the end of 2020. Documents reviewed by KQED show the Trust took in an additional $12.7 million in funding provided by PG&E last Spring, cash spent to set up the claims process.

Trotter, a retired California Appeals Court judge, charges $1,500 an hour, according to another court filing, while claims administrator Cathy Yanni bills $1,250 an hour. Both work at Irvine-based Judicial Arbitration and Mediation Services (JAMS), one of the nation’s largest private dispute resolution services.

"They're paying themselves very well. They have these enormous legal costs and there's not much to show for it," Cook said. "It’s like everything is a black hole and nothing moves, and there’s nothing you can do about it."