Pacific Gas and Electric Co. late Tuesday sent an additional eight crews and support equipment/personnel to Southern California as the first help from Nevada and Arizona requested by the governor also arrived to help beleaguered local electric utility crews in trying to take both preventive and restorative steps.

California’s multiple wildfires raged on, consuming 600,000 acres and more than 2,000 homes and killing 16 people. Arson is now suspected as the cause of up to four of the 10 fires in a five-county area of Southern California.

The vast bulk of the energy infrastructure impact has been on the electricity systems; natural gas infrastructure has been spared any major impacts so far, according to utility officials.

The state electric transmission grid operator reported Wednesday morning that two transmission lines had tripped earlier in the day but were quickly and automatically restored. Although utility poles and wires continue to get consumed by the blazes, no widespread power interruptions have occurred so far.

Both Southern California Edison Co. and San Diego Gas and Electric Co. requested assistance from neighboring utilities, and the PG&E utility has now sent 21 crews, equipment and 129 personnel, helping both of the Southern California utilities.

Meanwhile, Edison reported late Tuesday that more than 1,000 of its field and support personnel were responding to the fires; 600 utility poles had been destroyed and wires were down in about 300 different locations. Crews from both PG&E and the Sierra Pacific Resources’ utilities in Nevada were helping Edison, which has more than 36,000 customers — mostly in the local mountains now under siege — that were without power. At one time or another, Edison said 246,000 customers have lost power.

Gov.-elect Arnold Schwarzenegger went to Washington, DC, Wednesday seeking financial aid and rapid deployment of a one-stop disaster victims’ aid center in Southern California by this weekend. Gov. Gray Davis continued his daily touring of major fire areas and briefings with local, state and federal emergency response officials.

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