The power company being investigated as a possible ignition point in parts of the Los Angeles wildfires left power lines open shortly before the outbreak as life-threatening wind speeds were just 1 mph below threshold. defended the decision.
Southern California Edison CEO Stephen Powell, who is already facing lawsuits over the fires, said the winds that blew through Eaton Canyon on January 7 were not strong enough to knock out power lines. he claimed. Los Angeles Times reported.
Typically, wind speeds need to reach 60 to 80 miles per hour for the company to shut down the line, but last week's weather fell below that threshold, Powell said Wednesday, but he wasn't sure how low the readings were. It was not explained in detail.
But around the same time the devastating Eaton Fire was first reported at around 6 p.m., the weather bureau recorded wind gusts of 59 mph (just 1 mph below the threshold), the LA paper noted.
Hours earlier, wind gusts of up to 103 mph were recorded in the area, according to weather service data. Wind gusts reached 110 mph after the fire began to spread rapidly.
Measurements of wind strength where Edison's power tower is located were not immediately available.
Still, Powell maintained that the company's data showed no anomalies in the 12 hours before the Eaton Fire, which destroyed large swathes of the Altadena area just north of Los Angeles.
Investigators have yet to confirm the cause of the Eaton fire, which has already destroyed around 7,000 structures and killed at least 16 people.
The company is already facing several lawsuits alleging that its electrical equipment caused the fires after witnesses spotted flames at the base of the company's transmission towers.
As wildfires rage, footage of purported sparks is going viral on social media.
Mr Powell said he understood the frustration of local residents and admitted his heart sank after watching the now-viral video.
“My heart sank because I saw that, and I have to do it right away, as anyone would think if you saw that it was the early stages of a fire… from there it was all around. You won't see anything and your mind will disappear [to thinking it was caused by Edison electrical equipment] Absolutely,” he said.
