PG&E Tells Federal Judge It Cannot Completely Comply with Wildfire Prevention Rules
Last Friday, PG&E told U.S. District Court Judge William Alsup that it isn’t able to comply with state rules designed to reduce wildfire risks 100 percent of the time. Judge Alsup is in charge of PG&E’s felony probation for safety violations and obstruction of justice convictions and continues to criticize PG&E’s safety procedures. In a court filing, PG&E estimated that to make its electrical lines safe, they would need to hire 650,000 new employees, at a cost of up to $150 billion, and a rate increase to customers of at least 500%.
Northern California Fire Lawyer Mike Danko responded in the San Jose Mercury News: “On one hand, they say they are the experts and ask the judge to stay out of it. Then on the other hand, PG&E says it’s not their fault and they don’t really have this under control. PG&E refuses to take responsibility.” Former CPUC Commissioner Loretta Lynch added “PG&E has decided not to do what it takes to ensure the safety of the system. Every utility in the country is better at these safety efforts than PG&E.” Commissioner Lynch also noted that an engineering firm from San Diego estimated it could do the work on the most dangerous 25% of lines with only 155 employees, further undercutting PG&E’s credibility.
PG&E estimate up to a 100 million trees could come into contact with their lines this year. Vegetation contact with power lines is responsible for numerous fires every year in Northern California, including many of the deadly 2017 Wine Country and Redwood Fires.
About Northern California Fire Lawyers
Northern California Fire Lawyers is a team of more than 30 attorneys from a coalition of three Northern California law firms: Corey, Luzaich, de Ghetaldi & Riddle, Danko Meredith and Gibbs Law Group. Collectively, our fire lawyers have more experience investigating and bringing claims against PG&E than any law firm in California. Our attorneys have been appointed by California judges to leadership positions in some of the largest fire and disaster cases, including the Butte Fire Cases, 2017 PG&E Fire Cases, and San Bruno Explosion lawsuits.
Our attorneys currently represent over 200 families who are victims of the 2015 Butte Fire that devastated over 70,000 acres. We have earned hundreds of millions of dollars in settlements and verdicts for our clients, and members of our team have been honored for their work with numerous awards, including “Top Plaintiff Lawyers in California,” “Trial Lawyer of the Year,” and “Top Women Lawyers in Northern California,” among others.
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Our wildfire attorneys are happy to answer any questions you may have. Call (530) 208-3062, or email us at contact@norcalfirelawyers.com to speak with a wildfire attorney, free of charge.