Where was the power line that caused the worst wildfire in history, which killed 85 people?



The wildfire that broke out in California, USA in November 2018 was

the largest wildfire in the state's history , killing as many as 85 people. It turns out that the source of the wildfire was a power line, and Tube Time, who conveys information on vintage hardware, explains the details of the source with images of the time.



A photo of the transmission tower taken on November 11, 2018 after the wildfire. At first glance, there seems to be no abnormality ...



One

insulator is missing to insulate the transmission line and the tower.



Originally, the left and right insulators should be installed at the same height.



It is a part called 'C hook' that supports the insulator.



This is an image of the C hook that supported the dropout. The hook part is divided.



When observing the cross section of the hook, red rust appears in the part surrounded by the black line. In addition, there are traces of insulators scraping hooks along the red line, indicating that maintenance has not been performed for a long time.



This is an image of a C hook that has deteriorated but has not been divided. Originally, it was necessary to replace the hook before it was split, but the C hook that caused the accident was worn out without being replaced, and as a result, it was split.



The C hook broke and the insulator fell off, causing a short circuit between the transmission line and the tower, which had a voltage of 115,000 volts. Hot power lines were scattered on the ground and became the source of wildfires.



On the day of the wildfire, the air was very dry and the wind was strong, so the fire spread in a blink of an eye.



The fire spread in one minute with the force of burning two Tokyo Dome forests, making it the worst wildfire in California's history, killing 85 people.



The period during which the C-hook was not maintained is unknown because the

Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG & E), a major American power and gas company that managed the tower, has not recorded it. , The FBI investigated and found that the material for the C hook was made of brass. It is said that brass is not used in the C hook manufactured in the last 100 years.

Tube Time speculates that the PG & E side should have been aware of the problem, as the C hook that caused the wildfire had been moved from the original bracket to the newly fixed L bracket at some point. Regular inspections are legally required for PG & E, but since there are no records prior to 2000, it is unknown when the inspections were conducted.



In December 2019, PG & E settled with the victims of the wildfire by paying a total of $ 13.5 billion (about 1.46 trillion yen) in damages. In addition, we are currently breaking away from Chapter 11 of the Federal Bankruptcy Code filed in 2019.

In the comment section of the social news site Hacker News , 'PG & E is definitely responsible, but considering that the area where the forest fire occurred is a dry area with thick forest, all the damage caused by the forest fire. the and it is difficult 'to the responsibility of the PG & E opinion , such as discussion about the whereabouts of the responsibility that caused the wildfires have been made.

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in Note,   Hardware, Posted by darkhorse_log