On 29 January the Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) Corp in California files for bankruptcy protection following hundreds of lawsuits from victims of wildfires in 2017 – 2018 and tens of billions of dollars in potential liabilities. The company has been linked to a series of wildfires in California, including Camp Fire, which caused 86 deaths and destroyed 14,000 homes, along with more than 500 businesses and 4,300 other buildings. Equipment owned and maintained by the utility sparked major wildfires. Experts agree that the climate crisis is making the conditions for wildfires worse, and extending the season. Camp Fire broke out in Northern California in November 2018 and became the deadliest and most destructive fire on record in the state. The Insurance Information Institute estimates that insured losses from the Camp Fire totalled between US$8.5 billion and US$10.5 billion.
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