California utility company says its equipment likely sparked Hurst Fire

(KTLA) – Southern California Edison said in a filing submitted to state utility regulators Thursday that its equipment likely started the Hurst Fire in Sylmar last month.

The utility company’s admission comes after it acknowledged that fire agencies are investigating whether its equipment may have started the Hurst Fire, which burned nearly 800 acres when it sparked on Jan.7.

The fire was active for eight days before it was fully contained. The official cause of the fire remains under investigation, and SCE said it continues to cooperate with authorities.

In a second filing, SoCal Edison said it’s looking into whether an idle transmission line became energized and possibly sparked the deadly Eaton Fire, which impacted Altadena and Pasadena.

Multiple lawsuits have been filed on behalf of Eaton Fire victims, claiming equipment owned by Southern California Edison sparked the deadly blaze. Still, the official cause of the fire remains under investigation.

The Eaton Fire, which killed at least 17 people, was fully contained last week. The deadly Palisades Fire, which killed 12 people, flattened more than 6,800 structures and charred more than 23,000 acres, was also fully contained.