Regulators consider breaking up utility over safety concerns

California regulators are considering splitting up Pacific Gas & Electric or making other drastic changes amid concerns over the utility’s role in a gas explosion and deadly wildfires.

The Public Utilities Commission on Friday outlined options it could take against the Northern California company, including replacing its board of directors or turning it into a public utility.

PG&E didn’t immediately comment.

Officials are investigating whether PG&E’s equipment started the Camp wildfire six weeks ago that leveled the town of Paradise, killed at least 86 people and destroyed close to 15,000 homes.

But regulators have been examining the utility’s safety policies for years. A review was ordered in the wake of a 2010 gas pipeline explosion that killed eight people and destroyed 38 homes in a San Francisco suburb.