LOS ANGELES — A California utility mentioned Thursday that its tools doubtless sparked a wildfire in Los Angeles that broke out the identical day as two huge blazes within the space killed not less than 29 folks and destroyed hundreds of houses.
The admission by Southern California Edison over its doubtless function within the Hurst Hearth, which didn’t destroy any constructions or end in any deaths, got here in a required submitting with state utility regulators.
The utility acknowledged final month that fireside companies are investigating whether or not its tools could have began the Hurst Hearth, which scorched about 1.25 sq. miles (3.2 sq. km) across the Sylmar neighborhood of Los Angeles.
“Absent further proof, SCE believes its tools could also be related to the ignition of the Hurst Hearth,” Thursday’s submitting mentioned.
In a second submitting, the utility mentioned it’s trying into whether or not an idle transmission line grew to become energized and presumably sparked the lethal Eaton Hearth, which devastated Altadena. However it nonetheless maintains there’s no proof that its tools was answerable for beginning that blaze.