(Bloomberg) -- PG&E Corp.’s power lines ignited last year’s Kincade fire, which forced the evacuation of tens of thousands of residents in Sonoma County and destroyed 374 structures, California investigators said.
PG&E transmission lines northeast of the town of Geyserville sparked the blaze, which burned 77,758 acres and injured four people, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection said in an emailed statement Thursday. It was the biggest in the state last year.
PG&E had said that one of its transmission lines failed near the origin of the Kincade fire shortly before it was reported to have started on October 23. The company said in May that it may need to book a loss of at least $600 million stemming from damages tied to the wildfire.
The Kincade Fire investigative report has been forwarded to the Sonoma County District Attorney’s Office, Cal Fire said.
The report comes just weeks after PG&E emerged from the largest utility bankruptcy in U.S. history. The company was forced to file for Chapter 11 protection after amassing more than $30 billion in liabilities from 2017 and 2018 wildfires blamed on its equipment.
©2020 Bloomberg L.P.
