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2025 Annual Fire Report

Fires in Bethel Island, California

In 2025, fire departments serving Bethel Island responded to 22 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $50K building blaze. Here's the full picture.

Updated Sep 27, 2026 Grade B- Peak yr 2023 Contra Costa County 1,993 residents 0 reporting departments 100 5-yr
Total incidents
22
+15.8% vs 2024
Building fires
0
Residential 67% Other 33%
Property loss
$112K
$77K structure · $35K contents
Deaths & injuries
0 / 0
0 civilian deaths · 0 civ injuries · 0 firefighter injuries
01 The mix

What kinds of fires happen here?

Fire in motor home, camper, recreational vehicle lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 55% of all calls.

22
Total Incidents
Fire in motor home, camper, recreational vehicle 3 13.6%
Electrical wiring/equipment problem, other 3 13.6%
Outside rubbish fire, other 2 9.1%
Gas leak (natural gas or LPG) 2 9.1%
Power line down 2 9.1%
All other categories 10 45.5%
02 Seasonality

When do fires happen?

Sep peaks. Dec dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.

Jan 2
Feb 1
Mar 2
Apr 1
May 2
Jun 1
Jul 2
Aug 2
Sep 3
Oct 3
Nov 3
Dec 0
Fewer
More
2b Five-year trend

Year over year in Bethel Island

100 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023. $441K cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.

YearIncidentsYoY 
2021* 8 —
2022 24 —
2023 27 +12.5%
2024 19 -29.6%
2025 22 +15.8%

* Well below Bethel Island's usual volume. That almost always means one or more departments didn't submit a full year to NFIRS, not that fires dropped, so no year-over-year change is shown for it.

03 Cause of ignition

What sparks building fires?

For the 0 building fires Bethel Island departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.

Unintentional
57%
4
Cause undetermined
14%
1
Intentional / arson
0%
0
Equipment / heat source failure
29%
2
Under investigation
0%
0
Act of nature (lightning)
0%
0
3b Where fires start

Where do fires start in Bethel Island?

NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 24 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 originCountShare 
1 Outside area, other 4 16.7%
2 Undetermined 4 16.7%
3 Cooking area, kitchen 3 12.5%
4 Operator/passenger area of transportation equip. 3 12.5%
5 Egress/exit, other 2 8.3%
6 Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison 2 8.3%
7 Other 1 4.2%
8 Entrance way, lobby 1 4.2%
9 Wall surface: exterior 1 4.2%
10 Engine area, running gear, wheel area 1 4.2%
11 All other areas 2 8.3%
3c What ignited it

What actually ignited the fire?

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 Bethel Island mix.

#Heat sourceCountShare 
1 Undetermined 8 33.3%
2 Arcing 4 16.7%
3 Heat from powered equipment, other 2 8.3%
4 Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment 2 8.3%
5 Hot or smoldering object, other 2 8.3%
6 Heat source: other 1 4.2%
7 Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment 1 4.2%
8 Heat from other open flame or smoking materials 1 4.2%
9 Flame/torch used for lighting 1 4.2%
10 Chemical, natural heat source, other 1 4.2%
11 All other sources 1 4.2%
04 The biggest fires

4 fires · $77K in losses

Largest single-incident property losses reported by Bethel Island departments in 2025. These 4 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.

# Property loss Type Severity Status
1 $50,000 Fire in mobile home used as fixed residence Significant Investigated
2 $15,000 Fire in motor home, camper, recreational vehicle Significant Investigated
3 $10,000 Fire in motor home, camper, recreational vehicle Significant Investigated
4 $2,000 Fire, other Significant Investigated
05 How Bethel Island compares

Bethel Island vs California vs the nation

Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Bethel Island sits above the national average for incidents per resident.

11.04
Incidents per 1,000 residents
Bethel Island
11.04
CA avg
5.32
US avg
7.48
0
Building fires per 1,000 residents
Bethel Island
0
CA avg
0.32
US avg
0.85
0
Civilian fire deaths per million
Bethel Island
0
CA avg
2.9
US avg
5.9
5c Wildfires nearby

Wildfires within 50 mi of Bethel Island

Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 610,168 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.

50 mi radius
YearCauseAcresDistance 
2020 Missing data/not specified/undetermined 396,624 42.0 mi
2017 Missing data/not specified/undetermined 51,624 41.3 mi
2006 Equipment and vehicle use 34,271 47.7 mi
2018 Missing data/not specified/undetermined 12,300 45.1 mi
2009 Missing data/not specified/undetermined 12,200 28.0 mi
2018 Equipment and vehicle use 11,789 37.8 mi
1996 Arson/incendiarism 9,820 46.2 mi
2015 Equipment and vehicle use 8,051 41.7 mi
2003 Equipment and vehicle use 6,804 33.0 mi
2005 Arson/incendiarism 6,744 25.7 mi
2014 Fireworks 6,488 41.8 mi
2008 Missing data/not specified/undetermined 6,400 39.2 mi
5d Top ZIPs

Where in Bethel Island do fires concentrate?

Top 3 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.

#ZIP5-yr incidents 
1 94511 7
2 12345 1
3 94561 1
5e Peer cities

Cities similar to Bethel Island

Six California cities with population within ±25% of Bethel Island. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.

07 Stay prepared

Before the next Red Flag day.

A 30-minute weekend can cut your home's exposure substantially. These four checklists are a good starting point.

About this data

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.