So many 'hints' have been dropped for decades though:

There's openly discussed Smartcities AKA 15-minute cities AKA agenda 2030; there was the heavily promoted build back better (ostensibly to recover from Covid, but so easily adapted to do allsorts). Also floated was a high-speed maglev connection from Mexico, through California, to Canada and on to Alaska, and beyond, To consider are pipeline corridors, and, erm, then there is the destruction of evidences of Hillbilly Hollywoodses up in dem dere hills. How many establishments are no more? Never dismiss a bit of a desire to clear out some vermin.

Not on the Bingo card was that I saw an article that the Smart-meters recorded a surge of funny behaviours before the fires started - it was some fire dept or police statement. No questions asked - [prolly the fire burning somethin', somethin'] - and later, that pedes would find that historical news-piece about smart-meters and their incendiary nature - and a tictoc (shock) that there were old houses sans smart-meter that did not burn. And yet everyone trusted the lithium batteries. [Hezbollah pagers enter the chat].

This leads to a theory that certain neighbourhoods were slated to be cleared, and perhaps there's a dark plan at work. There may be multiple players, and therefore reasons to go ahead, though: Incompetence is too easy a reason, and perhaps not the only raison d'etre .