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While flames burned through the Northern California town of Paradise earlier this month, utility Pacific Gas & Electric Co. decided it would not turn off electricity due to improving weather conditions, the company told state regulators.
In a report sent to the California Public Utilities Commission on Tuesday, PG&E said a decision was made in the early afternoon on Nov. 8 that it would not go through with a possible shutoff of power in the area as a precaution against possible wildfires.
Two days before the blaze erupted, PG&E notified 70,000 customers across nine counties that it was considering shutting off power over a fire risk due to "localized extreme weather" with sustained winds of 20 to 30 mph and gusts up to 45 mph.
PG&E said in a new filing with the state that it determined weather conditions were no longer dangerous enough to warrant a massive power shut off on Nov. 8 - a decision that came as a massive fire was tearing through a Northern California town. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)
The Camp Fire was reported shortly after 6:30 a.m. in the community of Pulga near Camp Creek Road, and had spread to Paradise by 8 a.m., sparking frantic evacuations. The National Weather Service had the area under a red flag warning and warned of "extreme fire conditions" amid gusty winds.
But around 1 p.m., PG&E said a decision was made as "winds were decreasing, and conditions were no longer forecast to approach [Public Safety Power Shutoffs] criteria."
"Based on the forecasted information, PG&E no longer anticipated a possible need to de-energize," the report noted. "PG&E immediately informed all stakeholders of the change in conditions and that no lines would be proactively de-energized."
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The utility, which faces lawsuits regarding the cause of the fire that killed at least 88 people and destroyed 13,000 homes, has already notified regulators that there was a problem on an electrical transmission line minutes before the blaze erupted. Investigators, however, have not yet determined the cause of the Camp Fire.
A spokeswoman for the company told the Associated Press that power shut-offs are "not deployed as a response to an active fire" but that lines can be de-energized during emergencies if requested by fire officials to protect first responders.
A company spokesperson said that power shutoff are "not deployed as a response to an active fire." (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli)
If the utility does discontinue power due to weather conditions, it shuts off distribution lines, not transmission lines that are higher voltage, Megan McFarland told the AP.
The documents were released the same day a judge overseeing the criminal probation against the utility for a deadly gas pipeline explosion in the San Francisco Area in 2010 demanded to know what role PG&E had in the fire.
U.S. District Judge William Alsup told PG&E to explain whether “reckless operation or maintenance of PG&E power lines” started the blaze, and if that violated terms of the company's probation.
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Human remains from the devastating fire that destroyed Paradise, California are transported by refrigerated trucks to the Sacramento County's coroner lab.
The utility was found guilty in federal court of obstruction and other charges in connection to the San Bruno pipeline blast. During sentencing in January 2017, another judge had placed the utility on probation for five years that included the condition it not engage in any additional crimes.
PG&E spokeswoman Erin Garvey said the utility was aware of Alsup's notice and was reviewing it.
"We continue to focus on assessing infrastructure, safely restoring power where possible and helping our customers recover and rebuild," she said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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