Power Company Will Underground Lines In Paradise Fire Area

The same day that Malibu was hit by fire … the Northern California town of Paradise and Magalia were leveled by the Camp Fire.

85 were killed… some trapped by fallen power lines.

Now … Pacific Gas & Electric Co. says it will put all of the residential and business power lines in Paradise and nearby Magalia underground.

P G and E says it is a safety decision … to prevent future wildfires like the deadly Camp Fire. For decades … California regulations have prohibited the use of underground power lines as a fire prevention device.

The argument was that areas outside hi-fi risk areas should not subsidize underground Power lines in places like Malibu.

But after the last two years of deadly and disastrous fires …. California Gov. Gavin Newsom has opened the door to the use of underground powerlines as a fire prevention tool.

A P G and E official sayds they “decided to rebuild in this way after a careful review of factors, town planning and safety considerations.”

Paradise’s transmission lines will not be part of the project, as they were not damaged by the blaze, officials said. Only the distribution lines will go underground. The build process — which will come “at no additional cost” to impacted residents — will likely take more than five years to complete because of the “amount of engineering, design and construction” required, PG&E officials said.

Crews plan to install temporary overhead service in neighborhoods where residents are actively rebuilding as they begin the underground work, officials said.

This story is based on reporting in the San Francisco Chronicle.