Two homes in Old North Sacramento seriously damaged by fire, displacing more than 15
A fire “severely damaged” at least two residential buildings Tuesday in the Old North Sacramento neighborhood, displacing more than a dozen people, according to the Sacramento Fire Department.
An exterior fire ignited in vegetation and “quickly spread” to two structures in the 2300 block of Empress Street, a residential neighborhood just north of Arden Way, the Fire Department said in social media posts around 4:15 p.m.
Fire Department spokesman Capt. Keith Wade said approximately 17 to 20 residents lived in the two buildings. He said some of the residents did not know how many people lived in their apartment units, meaning the department could not get an exact head count.
No injuries were reported, and the American Red Cross responded to assist with displaced residents, the Fire Department said in tweets.
Based on the extent of the damage, Wade said neither building would be habitable pending significant repair work.
“I have nothing left,” Greg Salisbury, a lifelong Sacramento resident, said Tuesday. “Just my work shirt and what I’ve got on, that’s it. Both my roommates, that’s all we have is the clothes on our back.”
Salisbury said one of his roommates called him while he was at work and told him about the fire. He left work and came home.
Salisbury’s roommate said he saw city workers “with a weed eater weed-eating along the fence,” clearing vegetation from an alley along their backyard, just before the fire started, Salisbury said.
Wade said fire personnel at the scene heard reports from residents about a city worker starting the fire, but that investigators as of Wednesday morning had “no facts” to support those allegations.
“The investigation is still open and ongoing,” he said.
Wade confirmed no injuries had been reported.
“They got everybody out,” Salisbury said. “The dogs are out. The only thing that got left was my roommate’s bird that was in the back room.
“She’s all distraught about that.”
This story was originally published August 3, 2022 at 11:12 AM.
