Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
California State Investigation Reveals PG&E Failed To Maintain Transmission Lines For Years Before Deadly Fires
Reuters: PG&E Failed To Inspect Transmission Lines That Caused Deadly 2018 Wildfire-State Probe
Bankrupt California power producer PG&E Corp did not properly inspect and replace transmission lines before a faulty wire sparked a wildfire that killed more than 80 people in 2018, a probe by a state regulator has concluded. The Caribou-Palermo transmission line was identified as the cause of the Camp Fire last year, which virtually incinerated the Northern California town of Paradise and stands as the state's most lethal blaze. (Singh, 12/3)
The Wall Street Journal: PG&E Had Systemic Problems With Power Line Maintenance, California Probe Finds
In a 700-page report detailing the problems that led the Caribou-Palermo transmission line to malfunction on Nov. 8, 2018, sparking the Camp Fire, investigators with the California Public Utilities Commission said they found systemic problems with how the company oversaw the safety of its oldest lines. State fire investigators had previously determined that PG&E equipment started the Camp Fire, which killed 85 people, and the company hasn’t disputed the findings. But the new report goes well beyond earlier findings, alleging numerous serious violations of state rules for maintaining electric lines and specific problems with upkeep of the transmission line that started the fire. (Gold and Blunt, 12/2)
Los Angeles Times: PG&E Inspections Of Equipment That Sparked Deadly Camp Fire Were Flawed
PG&E crews had not climbed the tower that malfunctioned and sparked the Camp fire since at least 2001, the report said. “This omission is a violation of PG&E’s own policy requiring climbing inspections on towers where recurring problems exist,” the report states. A climbing inspection could have identified a worn C-hook that failed, and “its timely replacement could have prevented ignition of the Camp fire,” the report says. (Branson-Potts, 12/2)
