Two young patients, including a 3-year-old girl and boy who suffered major burns in a fire that killed dozens of children at a day care center in Mexico, are in Sacramento for treatment at Shriners Hospitals for Children Northern California.

Shriners officials said Sunday they could handle several more burned children if necessary.

The girl arrived during the day Saturday. The second patient -- a 3-year-old boy -- arrived at the hospital late Saturday night from Mexico, where at least 33 children remain hospitalized after the fire Friday at a day care center in Hermosillo, in Mexico's northern Sonora state.

The boy was listed in critical condition with burn injuries over 50 percent of his body, Shriners officials said Sunday.

The 3-year-old girl was listed in critical condition at Shriners with burns over 80 percent of her body, said Dr. Tina Palmieri, assistant chief of burns.

Both children are expected to require "a vast array of very complex services" and be hospitalized for months, Shriner doctors said.

Burns of more than 80 percent generally "require multiple sessions of skin grafting" and have a survival rate of "a little more than half for children," Palmieri said at a news conference Saturday.

Dr. David Greenhalgh, chief of burns, said Sunday the boy's arms and legs would be treated during surgery in the afternoon, likely the first of many operations he will undergo.

The risk of infection is high for both children. Greenhalgh told the Associated Press on Sunday the doctors are constantly monitoring the children because of the likelihood of sepsis infections.

"If you can imagine, you lose the main barrier to infection by

losing your skin," he told AP. "We give them tons of medicines that help the pain and help

them forget. We do want them to be able to respond to

questions and open eyes."

Mexican authorities flew the children to Sacramento, and they were accompanied by some family members.

A relative who arrived at the hospital, Felix Barreras of Fairfield, said the girl's father traveled with her.

"They called me from Mexico," said Barreras. "I see the news yesterday, but I never imagined it would be my family."

Barreras told the AP that the girl's mother is his niece, who was working at the day care center when the fire broke out. She was taken to a Mexican hospital.

"She went through the flames to pick out her daughter. She got burned on the face, the head. She swallowed a lot of smoke," Barreras said.

Shriners hospitals provide free care for burn, orthopedic and spinal-cord injuries in children. The Sacramento hospital is a regional pediatric burn center serving the western United States, Canada and Mexico.

The hospital will provide free treatment, support services and housing for the children and accompanying family members, officials said.

"We are very grateful to the Shriners institution for providing this type of service to Mexican patients," Mexican Consul General Carlos González Gutiérrez said at a news conference with Shriners officials.

It was unknown precisely how many other Mexican fire victims might be arriving at the Shriners hospital in Sacramento or other U.S. cities, González Gutiérrez said.

Medical workers in Mexico spent Saturday assessing cases in consultation by phone with Shriners officials in Sacramento, which serves as the triage point for burn victims transported to its hospitals in the United States, Palmieri said.

Call The Bee's Robert D. Dávila, (916) 321-1077.