‘What's on fire in Elk Grove?’: Sacramento residents report smoke, poor air quality

Elk Grove residents reported smoke Wednesday, but no fire has been confirmed. The smoke may be from a scheduled training burn in nearby Vacaville.

Residents of Elk Grove in California's Sacramento County are reporting seeing smoke in the area on Wednesday afternoon. As of now, there is no confirmation of a fire near Elk Grove from CalFire.

Representational. (Unsplash)

However, multiple residents are reporting that a fire fight has broken out in the. Users on the Reddit users reported the fire on the subreddit r/ElkGrove, where local community affairs are discussed.

Some wondered if it could be smoke from a scheduled training burn in Vacaville, located around 47 miles west of Elk Grove. The Vacaville Fire Department had said in an update on Facebook earlier today that they will perform a scheduled training burn at Calen Hill.

“We will be performing a live fire training burn today, 6/17, on Callen Hill. Large plumes of smoke will be visible in the area. Please avoid calling 911 if you see smoke in this location. Our crews will be closely monitoring the weather throughout the burn to ensure safety.”

Air quality in Elk Grove reached an AQI of 121 at 2pm local time on Wednesday, placing it in the "Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups" category, according to IQ Air. PM2.5 was the primary pollutant, measuring 43.8 µg/m³, meaning children, older adults and people with respiratory or heart conditions may experience health effects.

The hourly forecast indicates conditions are expected to improve through the evening, with the AQI dropping below 100 by around 6pm PDT and reaching the "Good" range overnight.

What Are Training Burns?

Training burns are controlled fires intentionally set by fire departments to train firefighters in real-world wildfire suppression and fire management techniques. Conducted under carefully monitored conditions, they allow crews to practice.