In 2025, fire departments serving Bayfield responded to 43 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $550K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Building fires lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 75% of all calls.
Jan peaks. Apr dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
130 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2025. $2.2M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 19 | — | |
| 2022 | 20 | +5.3% | |
| 2023 | 26 | +30.0% | |
| 2024 | 22 | -15.4% | |
| 2025 | 43 | +95.5% |
For the 12 building fires Bayfield departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 31 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 | 10 | 32.3% | |
| 2 | Laundry area, wash house (laundry) | 2 | 6.5% | |
| 3 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 2 | 6.5% | |
| 4 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 2 | 6.5% | |
| 5 | Outside area, other | 2 | 6.5% | |
| 6 | Multiple areas | 2 | 6.5% | |
| 7 | Other | 1 | 3.2% | |
| 8 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 1 | 3.2% | |
| 9 | Cooking area, kitchen | 1 | 3.2% | |
| 10 | Storage area, other | 1 | 3.2% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 7 | 22.6% |
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 Bayfield mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 18 | 58.1% | |
| 2 | Hot ember or ash | 3 | 9.7% | |
| 3 | Heat source: other | 2 | 6.5% | |
| 4 | Heat from direct flame, convection currents | 2 | 6.5% | |
| 5 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 1 | 3.2% | |
| 6 | Arcing | 1 | 3.2% | |
| 7 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 1 | 3.2% | |
| 8 | Cigarette lighter | 1 | 3.2% | |
| 9 | Chemical reaction | 1 | 3.2% | |
| 10 | Heat spread from another fire, other | 1 | 3.2% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Bayfield departments in 2025. These 3 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $550,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $1,900 | Fires in structures other than in a building | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $100 | Fire in motor home, camper, recreational vehicle | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Bayfield sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 2,846 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Power generation/transmission/distribution | 1,167 | 42.5 mi | |
| 1999 | Power generation/transmission/distribution | 258 | 26.4 mi | |
| 2016 | Natural | 257 | 48.5 mi | |
| 2010 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 144 | 48.9 mi | |
| 2007 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 120 | 38.2 mi | |
| 2002 | Natural | 120 | 49.2 mi | |
| 2017 | Arson/incendiarism | 79 | 27.2 mi | |
| 1992 | Smoking | 70 | 25.1 mi | |
| 1998 | Recreation and ceremony | 63 | 17.1 mi | |
| 2009 | Power generation/transmission/distribution | 50 | 41.9 mi | |
| 2015 | Power generation/transmission/distribution | 47 | 26.0 mi | |
| 2003 | Debris and open burning | 46 | 29.5 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 | 54814 | 130 |
Six Wisconsin cities with population within ±25% of Bayfield. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
2 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Bayfield.
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.