Cal Fire investigators removed a cross arm from the PG&E transmission tower that malfunctioned minutes before the Camp Fire ignited, an attorney said Wednesday, raising questions about whether the tower’s age may have caused the failure and possibly sparked the state’s deadliest wildfire.
Attorney Frank Pitre said the arm, attached to a “jumper line,” which helps transition power on the 115,000-volt transmission line, was removed by investigators as part of their probe into what may have ignited the Camp Fire on Nov. 8.
The utility notified state regulators that its Caribou-Palermo transmission line malfunctioned about 15 minutes before the fire was first reported at 6:33 a.m. underneath high-tension wires near Poe Dam. The California Public Utilities Commission and Cal Fire has said they are investigating whether PG&E equipment played a role in the blaze.