An investigation into whether Southern California Edison and a number of communications companies violated safety rules and caused a wildfire in Malibu is moving into the hearing phase at the California Public Utilities Commission. Up to $99 million in penalties are pending. The commission’s Consumer Protection & Safety Division has proposed $49.5 million in penalties for Edison. The remaining $49.7 million in penalties is sought from four companies that jointly owned or used poles in the city of Malibu for telecommunications lines and equipment, including, AT&T, Verizon, Sprint, and Next G. “I’d like some accountability from Edison,” Malibu mayor Laura Rosenthal told Current. “I’d like to see an assessment and plan for how they’re going to change [old or undersized poles] out.” In a Jan. 24 letter to the CPUC, Rosenthal said that power poles in the hilly area known for its canyons and high Santa Ana winds “were allowed to be grossly overloaded by Southern California Edison and a series of wireless communications companies.” The city would like to see stronger poles put in place and undergrounding of lines if it’s affordable, said Rosenthal. Edison spokesperson Lauren Bartlett said that undergrounding is up to Malibu and the County of Los Angeles in the Santa Ana-prone area. Under commission rules, the cost of undergrounding utilities can be split between local governments, residents, and utilities depending upon specific circumstances. “SCE has a program for inspecting poles for required maintenance and deterioration,” she added, “and poles are replaced when those issues are identified.” Bartlett noted the strength requirement for poles is at issue in a CPUC proceeding aimed at reducing the risk of wildfires posed by power lines. The case stems from a fire on Oct. 21, 2007, in which three utilities poles broke and fell amid heavy Santa Ana winds, igniting a fire that burned 3,836 acres. The fire destroyed 14 structures, 36 vehicles, and damaged 19 other structures. It occurred at the same time massive wildfires in San Diego--in which San Diego Gas & Electric lines were implicated--destroyed more than 2,000 homes and killed 15 people. Winds in Malibu were uncertain at the time, but could have exceeded 100 miles per hour, according to some meteorological records. The mayor’s letter came amid a series of rulings by CPUC administrative law judge Timothy Kenney denying motions by Edison to prevent public disclosure of information in the investigation and to dismiss one charge. The charge is that the utility knowingly destroyed evidence, namely, equipment that was mounted on the three poles that failed, which, if weighed, might show if they were overloaded. In a Dec. 5, 2011, filing, Charles C. Read, an outside attorney for Edison, noted a small piece of conductor, a telecommunications cable, and a switch were recycled, but that the company hauled the remainder of the debris to a warehouse. Read said Edison did not recycle or discard the equipment knowing it might have been considered evidence in the investigation. He added that its weight could easily be obtained by consulting product specifications. Kenney, however, ruled that it is a “trialable” issue. The Consumer Protection & Safety Division maintained in earlier filings that being able to examine and weigh the missing equipment was crucial to its investigation of the fire.
