Troy Malaspino

"We don't want to tip our hand," says Fire Marshal Troy Malaspino.Sacramento Bee/Hector Amezcua

Fire investigators confirmed Wednesday they are treating last month's spectacular Sacramento trestle fire as an arson -- but warned that despite a sense of urgency for a breakthrough, the investigation is laborious and could go on indefinitely.

"It's an arson investigation," Sacramento City Fire Marshal Troy Malaspino said.
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Malaspino said three city investigators have been pushing for answers at their own pace."That's half my staff."

They've been assisted by a fire investigation expert from the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

But Malaspino and other fire officials purposely have said little about their investigation.

"We don't want to tip our hand," he said, so that investigators can better judge the credibility of potential witnesses and informants.

Officials have found no indications of "any kind of serial arson going on right now," Malaspino said.

But "arsonists tend to go for bigger and better," he added.
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Before arriving at the belief that the fire was purposely set, Carman and Malaspino said investigators systematically reviewed potential causes -- such as sparks from a train, an electrical short or a brush fire.
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A fire department tip line has received more than 100 calls, Malaspino said, "everything from (wild theories) to folks who think specific people may have been involved."

One tip came in about a mysterious black sport-utility vehicle seen in the area before fire engines arrived."We identified it as a park ranger and interviewed him," Malaspino said.
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"It's typical for arson to take longer than other crimes" unless somebody comes forward with credible information on who did it and how, Malaspino said.

Troy Malaspino, Sacramento City Fire Marshal:

"We're not in the lawn business," said Sacramento Fire Marshal Troy Malaspino."We're the Fire Department."

"They are not required fire doors" says Sacramento city fire marshal Troy Malaspino.

He says the California building code states that fire doors are not required in Hotel Berry because the building has a sprinkler system.

So Malaspino explains the hotel does not have fire doors; it has what's known as exit doors.

"We haven't identified the cause of the fire," Fire Marshal Troy Malaspino said Monday.
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Malaspino said sparks from trains at times have caused brush fires, but that is unlikely in this case because the tracks were high on a trestle and vegetation below was green.

Malaspino said the fire is considered suspicious -- if for only one reason:

"That thing has been there 100 years and suddenly it burned," he said.

Sacramento Fire Marshal Troy Malaspino knows a hill in Folsom where he can watch fireworks going off for miles around Sacramento.Most are neither safe nor sane, as legal fireworks in California are dubbed, but explode or soar, and are illegal.

With fireworks stands opening throughout the state today, Malaspino and a local task force will be cracking down on illegal fireworks possession and use, with the Sacramento County District Attorney's Office joining for the first time.
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From his vantage point in Folsom, Malaspino said displays of fireworks that are legal in other states seem to be booming.

"There have been some pretty nice displays - but they're not legal," he said.

If you see anyone selling or using illegal fireworks in : the City of Sacramento call ( 916 ) 264-5471 ; in Citrus Heights , Elk Grove or Wilton or the unincorporated area of Sacramento County , call ( 916 ) 874-5115 ; in Roseville call ( 916 ) 774-5100 ; or in Folsom call ( 916 ) 355-7230 and one of our special enforcement teams will be dispatched to handle the call , pleaded Task Force member Sacramento City Fire Marshal Troy Malaspino.

Local fire officials and the Greater Sacramento Area Fireworks Safety Task Force , a safety coalition composed of representatives of local government , the fire service , the non-profit organizations , the media and the state-approved fireworks industry , debuted the No More Mr. Nice Guy program in 1997 after having implemented in the Illegal Fireworks Amnesty program for three years.That amnesty program was noted for its high promotional efforts , with live remote radio broadcasts during which listeners of rock and Spanish language radio stations were invited to turn in their illegal fireworks at designated fire stations in exchange for certificates that they could redeem for valuable gifts and prizes such as concert tickets , cd's , free food and other valuable premiums.

Last year the Task Force expanded the number of patrols and the territory those patrols covered.This year , like last year , there will be dedicated patrols for the Cities of Wilton and Elk Grove and expanded , dedicated patrols in the Cities of Sacramento , Citrus Heights , Roseville and Folsom as well as the entire unincorporated area of Sacramento County.

Light the way : Doug Link's bright idea to light K Street mall with fireproof luminarias was doused by Sacramento Fire Marshal Troy Malaspino , who wanted merchants to have firefighters standing by ( on overtime ) just in case.Troy won't discuss his decision , but several readers think he's all wet.