When the first flashes of fire and billows of smoke grabbed the attention of people living in the foothills of Eaton Canyon in Los Angeles County, residents recorded videos of the same cluster of transmission towers high on the chaparral-covered hillside, illuminated by flames.
California fire officials pinpointed the start of the Eaton Fire on the evening of Jan. 7 to that area, but more than a week later, the exact source remains under investigation, fueling speculation over whether a high-voltage transmission tower is what set off the deadly wildfire.
“I still see the fire investigators right now, crawling up there around the poles,” said Brendan Thorn, 28, who recalled witnessing flames at the tower’s base and stayed behind at his Pasadena home while his family fled.
