Rebuilding in the wake of a disaster

In California, the past several years have brought some of the deadliest and most destructive wildfires in the state’s history. (Photo: Lightspring/Shutterstock)

In 2015, 15,000 residents in the southern California community of Porter Ranch were evacuated from their homes for several months due to a significant gas leak at a nearby facility. The environmental disaster —- the worst natural gas leak in United States history — was found to have been caused by a leak sprung from an underground reservoir operated and maintained by Southern California Gas (SoCalGas).

The small California town of Paradise was consumed by the Camp Fire in 2018. Electrical lines belonging to Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) were blamed for causing the deadliest and most destructive wildland fire in California history.