Evacuations hold on Excelsior Fire east of Sacramento as crews slow blaze that burned structures

Several outbuildings burned and evacuations were ordered in southeastern Sacramento County after a fast-moving grass fire raced through open pastures and jumped roadways Sunday amid hot, dry and windy conditions.

The vegetation fire, dubbed the Excelsior Fire, sparked around 11:45 a.m. and was reported near Excelsior Road and Jackson Road, which carries Highway 16. Just after 12:30 p.m., firefighters said several structures including a barn were burned but no homes had been destroyed. Crews were assessing minor damage to several buildings.

By 4 p.m., as an army of fire crews and aerial resources gained the upper hand on the fire, Sacramento sheriff’s deputies held evacuations in a 1-mile radius of homes, ranches and businesses centered on Jackson and Sunrise. Roads in the area, however, remained closed to all but residents of the area.

The fire was mapped by state aerial resources at 876 acres just before 2 p.m. as Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District spokesman Battalion Chief Parker Wilbourn said crews were able to keep flames from jumping over Sunrise Boulevard after creating a “box” to contain the fire, Wilbourn said.

“This fire was spreading very rapidly into homes,” Wilbourn said, which prompted crews to defend structures along Jackson Road and ranches that were several miles south of the Mather Field area. He said livestock was threatened and firefighters and sheriff’s deputies went door to door to get residents out.

While containment on the grass fire was expected to ramp up quickly Sunday evening, firefighters were expected to be at the scene mopping up hot spots through Monday. The cause of the fire was under investigation, Wilbourn said.

Throughout the afternoon, plumes of black and brown smoke could be seen drifting from Rancho Cordova and along Highway 50.

Julieanna Marquez, 19, and her brother paced back and forth along Jackson Road as their goats bleated inside their trailer, safe from the flames. Winds swept through fields of dead grass stretching for miles as Marquez described how the fire caught her family off guard and led them to evacuate their 52-acre property.

“I am grateful that everybody got out,” Marquez said.

A field bordering their home was burned to a crisp but their house was saved by firefighters, Marquez said.

Marquez’s brother, Geno Scimemi, 24, said his cattle once grazed on the ruined farmland. Nearly $3,000 worth of hay bales went up in flames, he said.

“It basically mowed my lawn,” Scimemi added.

As the fire moved east, chewing through the dried-out vegetation, Metro Fire was helped by Cal Fire attack teams and multiple aerial resources, including a 737 tanker deployed to Northern California from Australia. Metro Fire’s helicopter and three fixed-wing aircraft were focusing their attention on the forward edge of the fire on Jackson and Sunrise.

The capital region and most of the Sacramento Valley are under their first red flag warning of the year, as northerly winds and high temperatures are contributing to fire danger. On Sunday, the National Weather Service extended the red flag through 8 a.m. Tuesday.