Pacific Gas And Electric Says It Isn't To Blame For The Tubbs Fire

The Pacific Gas and Electric Company says it isn't to blame for the massive wildfire that wreaked havoc across Northern California's wine country in 2017.

Lawyers for PG&E said in a court filing this week its equipment didn't spark the Tubbs Fire, which scorched thousands of acres and left 22 people dead.

The document read, in part: "The evidence supports the conclusion that this equipment, located beyond PG&E's service delivery point, was planned, designed, installed, maintained and operated by third parties, not PG&E."

PG&E made the filing at the request of a U.S. district judge, who will decide if the company breached the terms of its criminal probation stemming from the 2010 San Bruno pipeline explosion.

As the San Francisco Chronicle notes, one of those terms is that PG&E can't commit any other crimes. So the company would be in violation of its probation if it's found criminally liable in any of California's recent wildfires.

The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection says its investigation into the cause of the Tubbs Fire is ongoing.