CA Utility To Pay $55 Million For Dixie, Kincade Fires

SAN FRANCISCO, CA — A Northern California utility company will avoid criminal prosecution by paying more than $55 million amid two major wildfires sparked by its equipment.

Pacific Gas & Electric announced Monday that no criminal charges would be filed in one of the biggest wildfires in state history, the 2021 Dixie Fire. A criminal complaint in the 2019 Kincade Fire was also dismissed following settlements in both fires.

Both fires devastated communities in Northern California and displaced hundreds of residents. The Dixie Fire alone scorched more than 1 million acres across Butte, Plumas, Lassen, Shasta and Tehama counties, where the utility has agreed to strengthen wildfire safety and help rebuild communities affected by the fire.

The Dixie Fire decimated the historic town of Greenville after it was reported on July 14, a day after a PG&E repairman discovered flawed equipment.

The utility also committed to a five-year monitorship of its inspection work and vegetation management across impacted counties.

“We are committed to doing our part, and we look forward to a long partnership with these communities to make it right and make it safe,” Patti Poppe, Chief Executive Officer of PG&E Corporation, wrote in a statement. “We respect the leadership of the local DAs, welcome the new level of transparency and accountability afforded by these agreements, and look forward to working together for the benefit of the communities we collectively serve.”

Sonoma County prosecutors filed 33 criminal charges last year accusing PG&E of inadvertently injuring six firefighters and endangering public health with smoke and ash from the 2019 Kincade Fire.

Fire officials said a PG&E transmission line sparked the fire, which destroyed 374 buildings in wine country and caused nearly 100,000 people to flee as it burned through 120 square miles (311 square kilometers). It was the largest evacuation in the county’s history, prosecutors said, including the entire towns of Healdsburg, Windsor and Geyserville.

The utility’s federal probation ended in late January, raising worries from the judge who had been using his powers to oversee the utility to try to force management to reduce the fire risks posed by its crumbling power lines. At the time PG&E emerged from the probation, U.S. District Judge William Alsup warned PG&E remained a “continuing menace to California” and urged state prosecutors to try to rein in the company.

PG&E equipment has been linked to major wildfires before, including last year's devastating Zogg Fire in Shasta County. The utility issued a statement last year confirming that its equipment sparked the blaze after a Cal Fire investigation.

"The loss of life and devastation in the communities impacted by the Zogg Fire is tragic, and we recognize that nothing can heal the hearts of those who have lost so much. We also thank the courageous first responders who saved lives, protected property and worked to contain and put out the fire," the utility said in last May.

The utility has also been linked to a fire that devastated the town of Paradise and killed 85 people.

PG&E has been blamed for more than 30 wildfires that destroyed more than 23,000 homes and businesses since 2017. It has previously reached settlements totally more than $25.5 billion.

READ MORE: PG&E Says Its Equipment May Have Sparked NorCal Fire

The Associated Press contributed to this report.