In 2025, fire departments serving Arlington responded to 46 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $100K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Grass fire lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 76% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Feb dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
165 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2025. $1.2M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 41 | — | |
| 2022 | 30 | -26.8% | |
| 2023 | 23 | -23.3% | |
| 2024 | 25 | +8.7% | |
| 2025 | 46 | +84.0% |
For the 4 building fires Arlington departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 34 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 | 13 | 38.2% | |
| 2 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 5 | 14.7% | |
| 3 | Cooking area, kitchen | 3 | 8.8% | |
| 4 | Equipment or service area, other | 3 | 8.8% | |
| 5 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 3 | 8.8% | |
| 6 | Outside area, other | 2 | 5.9% | |
| 7 | Wall surface: exterior | 1 | 2.9% | |
| 8 | Roof surface: exterior | 1 | 2.9% | |
| 9 | Vehicle area, other | 1 | 2.9% | |
| 10 | Operator/passenger area of transportation equip. | 1 | 2.9% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 1 | 2.9% |
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 Arlington mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 17 | 50.0% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 9 | 26.5% | |
| 3 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 3 | 8.8% | |
| 4 | Heat source: other | 2 | 5.9% | |
| 5 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 1 | 2.9% | |
| 6 | Chemical reaction | 1 | 2.9% | |
| 7 | Heat from direct flame, convection currents | 1 | 2.9% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Arlington departments in 2025. These 5 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $100,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $60,000 | Outside equipment fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $50,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $10,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $500 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Arlington sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 7,440 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Arson/incendiarism | 2,909 | 29.4 mi | |
| 2004 | Recreation and ceremony | 1,000 | 44.5 mi | |
| 2012 | Debris and open burning | 400 | 24.5 mi | |
| 1996 | Arson/incendiarism | 290 | 20.4 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 225 | 35.5 mi | |
| 2015 | Debris and open burning | 217 | 44.1 mi | |
| 1995 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 200 | 41.9 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 200 | 47.4 mi | |
| 2003 | Equipment and vehicle use | 200 | 12.9 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 180 | 21.9 mi | |
| 2000 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 180 | 35.6 mi | |
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 150 | 28.3 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 | 55307 | 165 |
Six Minnesota cities with population within ±25% of Arlington. 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.