In 2025, fire departments serving Chaparral responded to 84 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $5K 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 61% of all calls.
Apr peaks. May dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
442 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023. $192K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 82 | — | |
| 2022 | 61 | -25.6% | |
| 2023 | 121 | +98.4% | |
| 2024 | 94 | -22.3% | |
| 2025 | 84 | -10.6% |
For the 6 building fires Chaparral departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 125 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 | 60 | 48.0% | |
| 2 | Outside area, other | 21 | 16.8% | |
| 3 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 8 | 6.4% | |
| 4 | Other | 4 | 3.2% | |
| 5 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 4 | 3.2% | |
| 6 | Structural area, other | 4 | 3.2% | |
| 7 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 4 | 3.2% | |
| 8 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 3 | 2.4% | |
| 9 | Operator/passenger area of transportation equip. | 3 | 2.4% | |
| 10 | Heating room or area, water heater area | 2 | 1.6% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 12 | 9.6% |
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 Chaparral mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 93 | 74.4% | |
| 2 | Heat source: other | 8 | 6.4% | |
| 3 | Match | 6 | 4.8% | |
| 4 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 3 | 2.4% | |
| 5 | Arcing | 3 | 2.4% | |
| 6 | Hot ember or ash | 3 | 2.4% | |
| 7 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 2 | 1.6% | |
| 8 | Fireworks | 1 | 0.8% | |
| 9 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 1 | 0.8% | |
| 10 | Cigarette lighter | 1 | 0.8% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 4 | 3.2% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Chaparral departments in 2025. These 4 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $4,915 | Fire in mobile home used as fixed residence | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $1 | Trash or rubbish fire, contained | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $1 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $1 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Chaparral sits below the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 147,696 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | Arson/incendiarism | 19,000 | 40.3 mi | |
| 1993 | Natural | 14,103 | 37.1 mi | |
| 1994 | Natural | 13,804 | 47.5 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 13,424 | 17.8 mi | |
| 1992 | Equipment and vehicle use | 12,000 | 43.1 mi | |
| 1994 | Natural | 9,000 | 28.7 mi | |
| 1993 | Natural | 8,900 | 35.0 mi | |
| 2011 | Arson/incendiarism | 5,181 | 38.9 mi | |
| 2010 | Arson/incendiarism | 5,160 | 18.8 mi | |
| 2018 | Equipment and vehicle use | 5,045 | 27.9 mi | |
| 2009 | Arson/incendiarism | 5,000 | 31.6 mi | |
| 2000 | Arson/incendiarism | 4,800 | 45.8 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 New Mexico cities with population within ±25% of Chaparral. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
2 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Chaparral.
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.