In 2025, fire departments serving Afton responded to 38 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $50K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Arcing, shorted electrical equipment lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 79% of all calls.
Jul peaks. Oct dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
173 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2022. $220K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 23 | — | |
| 2022 | 39 | +69.6% | |
| 2023 | 39 | +0.0% | |
| 2024 | 34 | -12.8% | |
| 2025 | 38 | +11.8% |
For the 6 building fires Afton departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 19 building fires investigators classified across 2021–2025. The room or location where ignition occurred — kitchens, bedrooms, exterior, vehicle areas — tells you where to focus prevention.
| # | Area of origin | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 8 | 42.1% | |
| 2 | Storage area, other | 3 | 15.8% | |
| 3 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 3 | 15.8% | |
| 4 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 2 | 10.5% | |
| 5 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 1 | 5.3% | |
| 6 | Conduit, pipe, utility, or ventilation shaft | 1 | 5.3% | |
| 7 | Courtyard, patio, porch, terrace | 1 | 5.3% |
NFIRS Heat Source (HEAT_SOURC) — the physical thing that started it. Spark or ember from operating equipment, an open flame, smoking materials, or hot embers from a fireplace are the leading culprits nationwide. Here's the Afton mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 11 | 57.9% | |
| 2 | Heat source: other | 1 | 5.3% | |
| 3 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 1 | 5.3% | |
| 4 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 1 | 5.3% | |
| 5 | Arcing | 1 | 5.3% | |
| 6 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 1 | 5.3% | |
| 7 | Cigarette | 1 | 5.3% | |
| 8 | Candle | 1 | 5.3% | |
| 9 | Lightning | 1 | 5.3% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Afton departments in 2025. These 3 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $50,000 | Off-road vehicle or heavy equipment fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $25,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $3,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Afton sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 16,416 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | Debris and open burning | 8,513 | 32.1 mi | |
| 2009 | Arson/incendiarism | 2,550 | 30.2 mi | |
| 2004 | Recreation and ceremony | 1,000 | 20.6 mi | |
| 2000 | Smoking | 420 | 37.4 mi | |
| 2010 | Equipment and vehicle use | 336 | 35.0 mi | |
| 1999 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 306 | 34.1 mi | |
| 2005 | Debris and open burning | 260 | 13.2 mi | |
| 2004 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 250 | 25.7 mi | |
| 2007 | Recreation and ceremony | 248 | 32.6 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 225 | 49.4 mi | |
| 1999 | Arson/incendiarism | 217 | 26.2 mi | |
| 1995 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 200 | 23.2 mi |
Top 1 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
| # | ZIP | 5-yr incidents | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 55001 | 173 |
Six Minnesota cities with population within ±25% of Afton. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
A 30-minute weekend can cut your home's exposure substantially. These four checklists are a good starting point.
Numbers reflect incidents reported by participating fire departments to the National Fire Incident Reporting System (NFIRS) Public Data Release for calendar year 2025. NFIRS is voluntary — about 23,000 of roughly 30,000 US fire departments report — so totals are a strong indicator, not a complete census. Per-capita comparisons use 2023 ACS population estimates. Wildland fire data complements NFIRS with NIFC and USFS perimeters. Active-fire counts come from a dated NIFC snapshot, not a live feed.