Long suspected, it’s now official.
The 2018 Camp Fire is the deadliest fire in California history with a death toll of 85 plus nearly 19,000 homes and businesses destroyed. It has been suspected for months that the fire was started by a high voltage line that shorted out moments before the fire was first spotted. Today Cal Fire investigators made it official in a news release:
CAL FIRE investigators were immediately dispatched to the Camp Fire and began working to determine the origin and cause of the fire. After a very meticulous and thorough investigation, CAL FIRE has determined that the Camp Fire was caused by electrical transmission lines owned and operated by Pacific Gas and Electricity (PG&E) located in the Pulga area.
The fire started in the early morning hours near the community of Pulga in Butte County. The tinder dry vegetation and Red Flag conditions consisting of strong winds, low humidity and warm temperatures promoted this fire and caused extreme rates of spread, rapidly burning into Pulga to the east and west into Concow, Paradise, Magalia and the outskirts of east Chico.
