California Wildfire Investigators Seize Utility Equipment

California forestry officials seized electrical equipment owned by Pacific Gas and Electric in the state’s investigation into a September 27 wildfire that killed four people and covered nearly 56,338 acres of property.

The Zogg Fire originated in the towns of Igo and Ono in southwestern Shasta County in Northern California, local media report. To date it has destroyed more than 200 buildings in its path.

A filing made Friday by PG&E with the Public Utilities Commission states that investigators with the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection seized some of its electrical equipment near where the fire started.

CalFire is investigating to determine a cause for the mammoth fire that is now almost entirely contained.

The utility told investigators that its equipment reported alarms and other activity that required the line to be deactivated.

PG&E, the largest utility in the U.S., provides natural gas and electricity to more than 65 percent of the state. Facing liability estimated a nearly $30 billion for California wildfires from 2015 to 2018, the utility filed bankruptcy in 2019.

In June, the utility pleaded guilty to 84 counts of involuntary manslaughter for the death resulting from the Camp Fire. The court fined the utility a maximum of $3.5 million.

The same month a federal judge approved a reorganization plan to allow PG&E to exit bankruptcy.