In 2025, fire departments serving Black Diamond responded to 55 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $200K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Gas leak (natural gas or LPG) lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 55% of all calls.
Jun peaks. May dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
282 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2024. $395K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 62 | — | |
| 2022 | 35 | -43.5% | |
| 2023 | 61 | +74.3% | |
| 2024 | 69 | +13.1% | |
| 2025 | 55 | -20.3% |
For the 5 building fires Black Diamond departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 44 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 | 11 | 25.0% | |
| 2 | Outside area, other | 7 | 15.9% | |
| 3 | Other | 5 | 11.4% | |
| 4 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 4 | 9.1% | |
| 5 | Cooking area, kitchen | 2 | 4.5% | |
| 6 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 2 | 4.5% | |
| 7 | Exterior balcony, unenclosed porch | 2 | 4.5% | |
| 8 | Courtyard, patio, porch, terrace | 2 | 4.5% | |
| 9 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 2 | 4.5% | |
| 10 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 1 | 2.3% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 6 | 13.6% |
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 Black Diamond mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 19 | 43.2% | |
| 2 | Arcing | 5 | 11.4% | |
| 3 | Hot ember or ash | 4 | 9.1% | |
| 4 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 3 | 6.8% | |
| 5 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 2 | 4.5% | |
| 6 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 2 | 4.5% | |
| 7 | Lightning | 2 | 4.5% | |
| 8 | Heat source: other | 1 | 2.3% | |
| 9 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 1 | 2.3% | |
| 10 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 2.3% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 4 | 9.1% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Black Diamond departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $200,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $20,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $5,000 | Chimney or flue fire, confined to chimney or flue | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $5,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $3,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $1,000 | Fire in motor home, camper, recreational vehicle | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $1,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $1,000 | Fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Black Diamond sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 65,733 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 52,056 | 39.3 mi | |
| 2017 | Natural | 3,853 | 43.4 mi | |
| 2003 | Natural | 1,097 | 48.9 mi | |
| 2017 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,061 | 29.2 mi | |
| 2006 | Natural | 969 | 42.6 mi | |
| 2009 | Natural | 750 | 37.2 mi | |
| 2020 | Natural | 588 | 45.0 mi | |
| 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 494 | 17.1 mi | |
| 2018 | Natural | 420 | 24.3 mi | |
| 2017 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 360 | 31.3 mi | |
| 2015 | Natural | 359 | 40.0 mi | |
| 2007 | Equipment and vehicle use | 350 | 37.5 mi |
Top 6 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six Washington cities with population within ±25% of Black Diamond. 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.