Warehouse fire destroys up to 60 golf carts in Sacramento

A warehouse near the Teal Bend Golf Course in Sacramento caught fire early Monday morning, officials said. The blaze destroyed dozens of commercial carts and triggered a hazardous materials response.

Crews with the Sacramento Fire Department responded around 2 a.m. to the 7500 block of Reservoir Road. The building sits near the Sacramento International Airport.

The facility was used by the repair and rental service VIP Golf Carts. Business owners Mohammad Mustafa and Farah Tamer said up to 60 carts burned inside.

Department officials stated that many units ran on lithium-ion batteries. The burning units prompted a level 2 hazmat response.

“Once you inhale them, they turn into an acid in your system, and they have heavy metal toxicity to them. So we want to make sure our crews are not in that environment for an extended period of time,” fire captain Justin Sylvia said.

Sylvia said gear goes to a shop for heavy metal decontamination. Firefighters extinguished the flames. No injuries were reported.

Mustafa and Tamer had moved their carts, tools, and equipment to the Sacramento site recently. They closed their Arden Way storefront following repeat break-ins and steep rent hikes.

“They’re telling us that it’s going to be $20,000 for the hazmat team to come out and clear out just batteries, and then we have to figure out how to dispose of everything else,” Tamer said.

Tamer described heavy structural damage to the building. The roof collapsed and metal panels melted away.

Hazardous material response teams manage chemical spills, toxic fumes, and battery incidents. Emergency crews clear contaminants before allowing property owners back on site.

The owners must now clear the remaining debris from the facility.