From Ed Fletcher:
A pursuit of a suspected thief sparked a 60-acre fire Wednesday afternoon after a Lincoln man tried to evade police through an open field, igniting bone-dry grass.
The incident started at 12:13 p.m. with a report of a man attempting to steal a generator from a Secret Ravine Parkway construction site, said Dee Dee Gunther, Roseville Police Department spokeswoman.
When police arrived, the man fled, prompting a 13-minute pursuit. With the police on his tail, the man left Diamond Woods Circle, driving a 1995 four-door Saturn into the open field.
Spark from the vehicle ignited the fire, Gunther said, but police quickly took Patrick John Henry (left photo), 40, into custody.
He was arrested on suspicion of grand theft, evading a police officer with disregard for public safety, resisting arrest and violating parole. He is being held without bail in the Roseville City Jail.
The fire burned grassland before being contained, Gunther said. Units from Roseville Fire Department, Cal Fire and fire agencies from throughout the area responded, she said.
The fire burned near Diamond Woods Circle and the Cincinnati Avenue/Sunset Industrial area of Roseville, Gunther said. No structures in the area were damaged, she said.
About 4,400 customers of Roseville Electric suffered a power outage for about an hour, a Roseville Electric official said.
One of the customers affected was the Westfield Galleria at Roseville shopping mall. Power was restored about 1:30 p.m.
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