PG&E Denies Awareness of Fire Risk From Aging Infrastructure

Pacific Gas and Electric admits it needs to do more to prevent another devastating wildfire, but it disagrees with a report that claims the utility knew that it’s aging infrastructure was susceptible to burning. Responding to a scathing Wall Street Journal report, PG&E denied the article’s conclusions that the utility knew for years parts of its transmission system posed a wildfire risk but did not fix them. In June, PG&E agreed to pay $1 billion in damages to local governments for blazes linked to its power lines, poles and other equipment. Most of the funds are related to last year’s Camp Fire in Northern California that killed 85 people and destroyed thousands of homes. The hardest-hit town of Paradise, which was left in charred ruins, will get $270 million to resolve wildfire claims.