According to a report by the Yolo County Grand Jury, nearly a dozen county employees knew over the years of pyrotechnics operations at an Esparto warehouse prior to the fire on July 1, 2025, that caused several deadly explosions. Photo courtesy of the Esparto Chamber of Commerce

YOLO COUNTY, CA (MPG) – The Yolo County Grand Jury, after eight months of investigation, issued a report on March 26 concluding that “although numerous local officials, including Sheriff’s deputies, fire officials, officials in the County building, code enforcement, planning and County Counsel’s offices, all knew about the fireworks businesses, none of them took any action”  to abate the prohibited activity. The complete report can be found at: https://www.yolocounty.gov/living/grand-jury/yolo-county-grand-jury-reports 

“The Grand Jury has identified nearly a dozen County employees who knew over the years of the pyrotechnics operations at the Esparto site but failed to take any remedial action,” the report stated. 

Furthermore, the Grand Jury concluded that “the Board of Supervisors over the years fostered a culture of tolerance of code violations that percolated through the County bureaucracy.” 

During its investigation the Grand Jury reviewed hundreds of pages of documents and conducted more than 30 interviews that resulted in about 50 hours of testimony.

Among the Grand Jury’s findings are the following: 

Enforcement of county ordinances would have prevented the death and destruction from the Esparto fireworks explosion; rural fire districts in Yolo County do not have the resources to provide adequate fire training and fire prevention services to their communities. 

Yolo County Community Services Department lacks the resources, training and systems to provide adequate code enforcement services to the unincorporated areas of the county. The County lacks a system that prioritizes potential code enforcement issues and an accountability system that tracks who is responsible for making code enforcement decisions. 

The Board of Supervisors “has encouraged a laissez-faire attitude toward new construction and businesses located in unincorporated areas.” The Board of Supervisors has not provided adequate resources for the enforcement of building and safety codes. The Yolo County Sheriff’s Office failed to provide training about crucial Yolo County safety ordinances or to enforce the county’s fireworks ordinances. The Yolo County Sheriff’s Office failed to enforce its own rules monitoring outside employment by department staff. 

In addition to the Grand Jury’s findings, it has proposed a total of 16 recommendations to the Board of Supervisors, Community Services Department and the Yolo County Sheriff. 

Among the recommendations are the creation of a Fire Warden position to establish a fire prevention and inspection program in unincorporated areas as well as improved training for the County’s rural fire districts; the establishment of enhanced ethics training and code enforcement for employees in the Community Services Department; the addition of a second code enforcement officer to the Community Services Department as well as additional clerical support; the use of aerial surveys to identify unpermitted new construction in the county; upgrading the county’s system of tracking code enforcement activities; and additional training for all Sheriff’s sworn deputies on significant county ordinances to protect health and safety.

Additionally, the Grand Jury has recommended requiring the Sheriff to audit all existing authorizations for employees engaged in outside employment to verify they meet department requirements as well as an annual review of these permissions. Prior to approving any outside employment, the Sheriff shall ensure the businesses are compliant with all required local, state and federal operating permits. 

The Yolo County Civil Grand Jury is a grand jury with a one-year term charged with examining local government entities within Yolo County. It has no jurisdiction over state or federal agencies. Furthermore, civil grand juries do not normally consider criminal matters. It has been the practice of the Yolo County District Attorney to convene a special grand jury to consider criminal cases.