In 2025, fire departments serving Birnamwood responded to 20 fire and hazmat incidents . Here's the full picture.
Power line down lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 65% of all calls.
May peaks. Aug dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
61 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2025.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 8 | — | |
| 2022 | 10 | +25.0% | |
| 2023 | 12 | +20.0% | |
| 2024 | 11 | -8.3% | |
| 2025 | 20 | +81.8% |
For the 2 building fires Birnamwood departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 18 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 | 44.4% | |
| 2 | Vehicle area, other | 2 | 11.1% | |
| 3 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 2 | 11.1% | |
| 4 | Laundry area, wash house (laundry) | 1 | 5.6% | |
| 5 | Conveyor | 1 | 5.6% | |
| 6 | Attic: vacant, crawl space above top story, cupola | 1 | 5.6% | |
| 7 | Wall assembly | 1 | 5.6% | |
| 8 | Courtyard, patio, porch, terrace | 1 | 5.6% | |
| 9 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 1 | 5.6% |
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 Birnamwood mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 11 | 61.1% | |
| 2 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 3 | 16.7% | |
| 3 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 1 | 5.6% | |
| 4 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 1 | 5.6% | |
| 5 | Hot ember or ash | 1 | 5.6% | |
| 6 | Lightning | 1 | 5.6% |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Birnamwood sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 2,781 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | Debris and open burning | 320 | 46.6 mi | |
| 1997 | Debris and open burning | 300 | 44.1 mi | |
| 1996 | Smoking | 187 | 36.4 mi | |
| 2000 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 170 | 49.2 mi | |
| 2008 | Arson/incendiarism | 153 | 35.3 mi | |
| 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 133 | 34.1 mi | |
| 2014 | Natural | 110 | 43.6 mi | |
| 2004 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 109 | 38.7 mi | |
| 2012 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 101 | 46.2 mi | |
| 1999 | Smoking | 100 | 47.1 mi | |
| 2007 | Arson/incendiarism | 94 | 31.2 mi | |
| 2001 | Equipment and vehicle use | 88 | 12.4 mi |
Top 2 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 Birnamwood. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Birnamwood.
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.