A new theory has emerged about the cause of the wildfires that have devastated Los Angeles, as a firm detected spikes in electrical faults hours before the Palisades, Eaton and Hurst fires broke out
19:39, 11 Jan 2025Updated 19:39, 11 Jan 2025
The fires have ravaged LA, destroying more than 9000 structures(Image: Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
Faults in the Los Angeles power grid mysteriously spiked in areas where wildfires raged this week, raising questions about their possible link to the devastation.
Whisker Labs, a company that monitors electrical activity, said they detected spikes in electrical faults hours before the Palisades, Eaton and Hurst fires broke out. Bob Marshall, CEO of Whisker Labs, explained that data shows power was not immediately shut off after the faults surged, suggesting they may have been caused by wires blowing in the wind or touching trees.
Marshall said: “What I cannot say is one of these faults sparked the fire. I don’t know that. But it just takes one to start the fire.”
Strong winds helped the wildfires spread across the state of California(Image: Getty Images)
The fires together have destroyed or damaged more than 9000 structures and lead to 11 deaths.
In Pacific Palisades, the hardest-hit area, 63 power grid faults were recorded in the two to three hours before the fire broke out, with 18 occurring in the crucial hour before it ignited on Tuesday.
The Eaton fire saw a staggering 317 faults before it started, while the Hurst fire experience more than 200 faults.
Although no official cause of the fires have been confirmed yet, these electrical surges mean that despite the sparks flying in the area in the hours before the fires broke out, the energy was left on.
Eleven people have tragically died as a result of the wildfires (Image: Anadolu via Getty Images)
Marshall said: “The problem is the utilities don’t have the sensors to know this is occurring. This sensor network is sophisticated and sensitive. We have more information than they do. Our objective, we’ve been trying to get utilities to pay attention to the data because it’s valuable to know when the grid is stressed.”
As the fires continue to rage, thousands have been forced to evacuate from their homes and early predictions say the recovery job could take up to a decade.
Many people have hit out at Los Angeles’ city’s leadership and handling of the ongoing wildfires.
Firefighters have been tackling blazes across the state all week (Image: Getty Images)
Fire Chief Kirstin Crowley took aim at the city’s mayor Karen Bass for “failing” fire crews. She said: “We are screaming to be properly funded to make sure that our firefighters can do their jobs so that we can serve the community.”
Khloe Kardashian has backed the fire chief’s statement and dubbed Mayor Bass a ‘joke’ in a statement on her Instagram.
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