Sacramento firefighters were on high alert this July 4th
SACRAMENTO — The 4th of July holiday kept Sacramento-area fire departments on high alert.
On average, Sacramento Metro Fire gets 300 calls a day — between 10 and 20 are fire-related. On Independence Day alone, they had 130 fire dispatches.
A garage roof collapsed in Carmichael on Oaklawn Way, and a cat was returned to its owner. That was just one of 130 calls for Metro Fire on Tuesday.
"Some of them will absolutely be fireworks-related," said Capt. Parker Wilbourn with Metro Fire. "We've also had a number of injuries. We've had several amputees and burn-related injuries as well."
Crews in Sacramento worked through the night with some fires happening just minutes apart. Firefighters rescued a kitten while battling a blaze on Glenrose Avenue off Auburn Boulevard at around 1 a.m. Then, a fire broke out in the 3800 block of 1st Avenue an hour later.
"It was pretty big," RJ Wilkins said. "The fire crew was on top of it. They were playing no games and they put out that fire right away.
Wilkins watched as crews fought to keep it from spreading to nearby homes.
"With this older-style construction, [it] made it a little bit more challenging to make access into the attic," Sacramento Fire Department Capt. Justin Sylvia said of the 1st Avenue fire. "Once they got in there, the fire had already burned through the roof. At one point, we ordered all companies to come out of the building due to the safety of our crews."
While it's not known how it started, Wilkins said neighbors are proactive every July 4th.
"Some people wet their roofs. Some people with dry grass, people wet their grass before all the festivities kick off," he said.
Thankfully, nobody was home and no injuries were reported.
"It was a godsend nothing else caught on fire and everybody else is OK," Wilkins said.
With crews expecting another busy night Wednesday, fire safety and prevention remain paramount. Wilbourn has this warning: "There is a misconception that just because there is a safe and sane label on there, that that firework is safe, and that's just not the case. If you're not handling it properly, you're not disposing of it properly. That's where we run into problems."
The holiday may be over, but if you think someone in your neighborhood is setting off illegal fireworks, you can report them.
