PG&E sued over Capitola explosion; fire officials reveal cause

By Brooke Kinebrew

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    CAPITOLA, California (KSBW) — Sacramento-based law firm, Kershaw Talley Barlow filed a class action lawsuit on behalf of three Capitola Village residents and a business owner.

This is following an explosion and fire at 5:10 on Christmas morning at a two-story apartment building in Capitola Village on Lawn Way.

The 14-page complaint alleged a failure in Pacific Gas and Electric’s underground utility infrastructure caused the explosion.

“It was scary as crap,” said neighbor Julie Geraci, one of four plaintiffs who was sleeping in her home, yards away, during the explosion. “We went to the Esplanade, billowing smoke, took the videos, went around, saw other people coming out of the residence. It was quite shocking. I think it’s super important the village is safe; that’s the main thing.”

Fire officials said their investigation determined that an external gas leak, damaged by an electrical fault underground, led to a release of gas, which then found an ignition source on the second floor, causing the explosion.

“We believe that the gas proximately started leaking around 3:20 a.m., and there was a power outage,” Assistant Fire Chief Patrick Winters for the Central Fire District of Santa Cruz County said. “That’s where we believe the damage to the gas line occurred, or the investigators believe that the damage to the gas line occurred. The gas then began leaking out of the ground and around and, at that point, seeking a source of ignition.”

That building is now demolished. Crews were on the scene Wednesday, cleaning up debris.

PG&E is aware of the lawsuits. In a statement to KSBW 8, they wrote in part, “Safety remains our most important responsibility, and we are confident in the safety of the local gas system. We are currently conducting work in the area to expose and replace some facilities as an additional layer of protection for the community.”

“I did some research on San Bruno [pipeline explosion], and it’s pretty scary that that could have actually happened to the village, but again, I think it was isolated, and so now they’re [PG&E] being preemptive, right? Bringing the tractors in and doing what they need to do,” Geraci said.

The complaint also says one person suffered serious injuries, including a severe concussion, brain injury, and PTSD.

PG&E is also conducting two separate investigations.

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