In 2025, fire departments serving Augusta responded to 38 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $2.0M building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Aircraft standby lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 66% of all calls.
May peaks. Dec dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
182 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023. $3.6M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 25 | — | |
| 2022 | 32 | +28.0% | |
| 2023 | 48 | +50.0% | |
| 2024 | 39 | -18.8% | |
| 2025 | 38 | -2.6% |
For the 3 building fires Augusta departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 35 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 | 7 | 20.0% | |
| 2 | Vehicle area, other | 3 | 8.6% | |
| 3 | Outside area, other | 3 | 8.6% | |
| 4 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 3 | 8.6% | |
| 5 | Other | 2 | 5.7% | |
| 6 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 2 | 5.7% | |
| 7 | Storage area, other | 2 | 5.7% | |
| 8 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 2 | 5.7% | |
| 9 | Entrance way, lobby | 1 | 2.9% | |
| 10 | Bathroom, checkroom, lavatory, locker room | 1 | 2.9% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 9 | 25.7% |
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 Augusta mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 15 | 42.9% | |
| 2 | Heat source: other | 3 | 8.6% | |
| 3 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 3 | 8.6% | |
| 4 | Arcing | 3 | 8.6% | |
| 5 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 2 | 5.7% | |
| 6 | Match | 2 | 5.7% | |
| 7 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 2.9% | |
| 8 | Molten, hot material | 1 | 2.9% | |
| 9 | Cigarette lighter | 1 | 2.9% | |
| 10 | Lightning | 1 | 2.9% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 3 | 8.6% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Augusta departments in 2025. These 1 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $2,000,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Augusta sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 4,709 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,200 | 39.2 mi | |
| 1994 | Recreation and ceremony | 553 | 7.4 mi | |
| 2009 | Fireworks | 390 | 33.9 mi | |
| 2000 | Debris and open burning | 360 | 35.9 mi | |
| 1998 | Arson/incendiarism | 295 | 49.3 mi | |
| 1998 | Recreation and ceremony | 250 | 5.8 mi | |
| 2007 | Recreation and ceremony | 159 | 35.7 mi | |
| 2003 | Debris and open burning | 148 | 49.2 mi | |
| 2018 | Debris and open burning | 124 | 20.1 mi | |
| 2018 | Debris and open burning | 122 | 18.4 mi | |
| 2003 | Recreation and ceremony | 113 | 34.9 mi | |
| 2018 | Arson/incendiarism | 104 | 14.0 mi |
Top 3 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six Wisconsin cities with population within ±25% of Augusta. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Augusta.
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.