In 2025, fire departments serving Colby responded to 24 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $200K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Grass fire lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 67% of all calls.
Jul peaks. Oct dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
178 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2021. $897K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 49 | — | |
| 2022 | 38 | -22.4% | |
| 2023 | 37 | -2.6% | |
| 2024 | 30 | -18.9% | |
| 2025 | 24 | -20.0% |
For the 0 building fires Colby departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 45 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 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 13 | 28.9% | |
| 2 | Undetermined | 11 | 24.4% | |
| 3 | Vehicle area, other | 4 | 8.9% | |
| 4 | Operator/passenger area of transportation equip. | 3 | 6.7% | |
| 5 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 3 | 6.7% | |
| 6 | Chute/container - trash, rubbish, waste | 2 | 4.4% | |
| 7 | Other | 1 | 2.2% | |
| 8 | Exterior stairway, ramp, or fire escape | 1 | 2.2% | |
| 9 | Storage area, other | 1 | 2.2% | |
| 10 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 1 | 2.2% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 5 | 11.1% |
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 Colby mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 26 | 57.8% | |
| 2 | Heat, spark from friction | 3 | 6.7% | |
| 3 | Hot ember or ash | 3 | 6.7% | |
| 4 | Heat source: other | 2 | 4.4% | |
| 5 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 2 | 4.4% | |
| 6 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 2 | 4.4% | |
| 7 | Arcing | 2 | 4.4% | |
| 8 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 1 | 2.2% | |
| 9 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 1 | 2.2% | |
| 10 | Explosive, fireworks, other | 1 | 2.2% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 2 | 4.4% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Colby departments in 2025. These 3 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $200,000 | Off-road vehicle or heavy equipment fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $10,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $5,000 | Grass fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Colby sits below the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 15,723 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 6,000 | 48.7 mi | |
| 2017 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,900 | 43.2 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,200 | 10.6 mi | |
| 2017 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,200 | 20.6 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 650 | 37.0 mi | |
| 2017 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 600 | 44.4 mi | |
| 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 513 | 37.8 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 500 | 45.3 mi | |
| 2007 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 500 | 36.6 mi | |
| 2017 | Fireworks | 400 | 44.4 mi | |
| 2017 | Debris and open burning | 400 | 33.7 mi | |
| 2015 | Natural | 250 | 29.4 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 | 67701 | 178 |
Six Kansas cities with population within ±25% of Colby. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Colby.
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.