<P> On the evening of September 9, 2010, a suburb of San Francisco, San Bruno, California, was damaged when one of PG&E's natural - gas pipelines that was "at least 54 years old, 30 inches (76.2 centimeters) in diameter and located under a street intersection in a residential area ..." exploded sending a "28 - foot section of pipe weighing 3,000 pounds flying through the air, fueled by blowing natural gas ." The blast created a crater at the epicenter and "killed eight people and injured nearly five dozen more while destroying about 100 homes ." The USGS reported that the shock wave was similar to a 1.1 magnitude earthquake . Following the event, the company was heavily criticized for ignoring the warnings of a state inspector in 2009 and for failing to provide adequate safety procedures . The incident then came under investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). On August 30, 2011, the NTSB released its findings, which placed fault for the blast on PG&E . The report stated that the pipeline installed in 1956 that later burst did not even meet standards of that time . PG&E was charged with "twelve criminal felony counts alleging violations of the Natural Gas Pipeline Safety Act . PG&E pleaded not guilty to the "criminal counts in both the initial and superseding indictments, opting to put the prosecutors to their proof ." On April 1, 2014 a United States grand jury in San Francisco charged PG&E with "knowingly and willfully" violating the Natural Gas Pipeline Safety Act . </P> <P> In August 2015 the California Public Utilities Commission levied a $300 million fine against PG&E which they paid . PG&E also "refunded $400 million to gas customers and agreed to pay $850 million for gas - system safety improvements . It also settled more than $500 million in claims involving victims of the disaster and their relatives ." </P> <P> In 2014, PG&E rolled out the "Pipeline Pathways" project which was later rebranded to the "Community Pipeline Safety Initiative". These projects were PG&E's $500 Million four - year effort to clear many of the trees that lie along the almost 7,000 miles of the high pressure gas distribution pipeline in California . PG&E's claims that removing trees were necessary to 1) provide emergency access should an incident occur under a tree and 2) protect pipelines from rupturing due to tree roots . Many communities have protested the removal of private and public trees . According to local opposition groups, PG&E's safety claims for tree removal are incorrect and that tree removal makes aerial monitoring of pipeline faster and cheaper . In 2017, several lawsuits have been filed in Contra Costa County Court by the non-profit organization Save Lafayette Trees stating that PG&E did not conduct the proper CEQA reviews or provide ample public notice before signing agreements for tree removal . </P> <P> On the morning of April 16, 2013 a team of gunmen opened fire with rifles on the Metcalf Transmission Substation in San Jose, California, severely damaging 17 transformers . </P>

Pacific gas & electric co san francisco ca