Los Angeles fire began under power lines, cause not known

A destructive fire that exploded on the edge of Los Angeles began beneath a high-voltage transmission tower owned by Southern California Edison, fire officials said Monday.

Los Angeles Fire Department arson investigators determined the origin of the Saddle Ridge Fire was beneath power lines on a dry, steep hillside above the city's Sylmar neighborhood, Capt. Erik Scott told The Associated Press. The cause remained under investigation.

The fire that started Thursday night burned more than 12 square miles (31 square kilometers), destroyed 17 structures and damaged dozens more. One man died of a heart attack during the fire in the Porter Ranch neighborhood, officials said.

FILE - In this Oct. 11, 2019, file photo, a helicopter drops water while battling a wildfire called the Saddle Ridge Fire in Porter Ranch, Calif. Fire officials say a destructive fire that broke out on the edge of Los Angeles began beneath a high-voltage transmission tower. The destructive fire that broke out on the edge of Los Angeles began beneath a high-voltage transmission tower owned by Southern California Edison, fire officials said Monday, Oct. 14, 2019. (AP PhotoNoah Berger, File)

The fire department had said Friday that a witness saw sparks or flames coming from a power line near where the fire was believed to have started. At least two people told LA TV stations that they saw fire near power lines above Saddle Ridge Road around the time the blaze broke out.  

After several deadly blazes in the past two years have been blamed on trees and vegetation hitting power lines and other causes involving electrical equipment, utilities have been given authority to shut off power when fire risk is extremely high.

Just two days before the Los Angeles fire broke out, Pacific Gas & Electric Co. had cut power to nearly 2 million people in Northern California to prevent a repeat of catastrophic fires in that part of the state, including a blaze that destroyed the town of Paradise and killed 85 people.

SoCal Edison had warned it might cut power to close to 200,000 customers in communities throughout the region to prevent its equipment from sparking a wildfire. But it wasn't clear Monday if the fire originated in an area that could have had the power shut off pre-emptively.

SoCal Edison declined to comment on the fire's source. The utility reported to state regulators that its system was affected near the reported location and time of the fire, spokeswoman Susan Cox said.

It filed the report Friday with the California Public Utilities Commission "out of an abundance of caution," Cox said. She did not have additional details such as the kind of system, how it was affected or what the effects were.

Electric utilities must file reports in four instances: when there is a fatality or injury that involves electric facilities, when there is damage to property over $50,000, when there is significant media coverage, and when there is a major outage to at least 10% of the service territory at once, said Terrie Prosper, a spokeswoman for the commission.

The report is confidential and not publicly available, Prosper said.

The fire erupted Thursday night and was rapidly spread by strong Santa Ana winds.

Residents of Saddle Ridge Road said they fled their homes as gusts drove the flames down the hillside and tossed embers into the neighborhood, lighting trees and setting bushes ablaze.

The neighborhood is bordered by powerlines strung between large towers.

Attorney Gerald Singleton, who has sued utilities for starting wildfires and has investigators looking into the blaze, said the fire's origin indicates it was probably caused by SoCal Edison's equipment.

"When you have a fire start that close to a piece of electrical equipment, you know, generally that's what causes it," Singleton said. "We certainly don't have any definitive evidence that it was their fault, but ... we're going to keep looking at it."

The fire was 43% contained on Monday.

To the east in Riverside County, a 1.5-square-mile (3.8-square-kilometer) fire that destroyed dozens of mobile homes and left two people dead last week is fully contained.

That fire ignited when a garbage truck driver dumped a load that had caught fire.

Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont announced Monday he will run for reelection this year, squelching speculation that the 82-year-old progressive icon might retire at a time when the Democratic Party is anxious about the advancing age of its top leaders.

Hailing from a Democratic stronghold, Sanders' decision virtually guarantees that he will return to Washington for a fourth Senate term. And his announcement comes at a critical moment for Democrats as the party navigates a growing divide over Israel's war against Hamas in Gaza.

Sanders has criticized President Joe Biden's handling of the U.S. relationship with Israel even as he's hailed much of Biden's domestic agenda ahead of what could be a tough reelection fight for Biden against presumptive GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump.

Sanders said he wants the war in Gaza ended immediately, massive humanitarian aid to follow and no more money sent to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

"We are living in a complicated and difficult political moment," Sanders told The Associated Press on Monday. “I very strongly disagree with Biden in terms of the war in Gaza.”

At home, he said, the presidential election is between Biden and Trump, “and Donald Trump is in my view the most dangerous president, has been the most dangerous president in American history.”

With the prospect of Trump's possible return to the White House, Sanders framed his bid to return to the Senate as being driven by concerns about the future of democracy in the U.S. In an announcement video, he said that in many ways the 2024 election “is the most consequential election in our lifetimes.”

“Will the United States continue to even function as a democracy, or will we move to an authoritarian form of government?” he said. He questioned whether the country will reverse what he called “the unprecedented level of income and wealth inequality” and if it can create a government that works for all, and not continue with a political system dominated by wealthy campaign contributors.

Known for his liberal politics and crusty demeanor, Sanders has been famously consistent over his 40 years in politics, championing better health care paid for by the government, higher taxes for the wealthy, less military intervention and major solutions for climate change. He has also spent his career trying to hold corporate executives to account, something that he’s had more power to do as chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee.

Sanders is an independent. He was a Democratic congressman for 16 years and still caucuses with the Democrats.

He sought the Democratic presidential nomination in 2016 and 2020. He said a year ago that he would forgo another presidential bid and endorse Biden’s reelection this year.

“I have been, and will be if re-elected, in a strong position to provide the kind of help that Vermonters need in these difficult times,” Sanders said in a review of his positions as chairman of the important Senate panel and a member of the chamber's Democratic leadership team, as well as a senior member of various other committees.

AP writer Mary Clare Jalonick contributed from Washington.

FILE - Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., smiles as he addresses Unite Here Local 11 workers holding a rally, April 5, 2024, in Los Angeles. Sanders is running for re-election. The 82-year-old, from Vermont, announced Monday, May 6, that he's seeking his fourth term in the U.S. Senate. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes, File)

FILE - Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., speaks during a news conference, Jan. 25, 2024, at the Capitol in Washington. Sanders is running for re-election. The 82-year-old, from Vermont, announced Monday, May 6, that he's seeking his fourth term in the U.S. Senate. (AP Photo/Mariam Zuhaib, File)