In 2025, fire departments serving Elk River responded to 133 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 62% of all calls.
May peaks. Feb dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
653 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023. $2.9M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 141 | — | |
| 2022 | 117 | -17.0% | |
| 2023 | 154 | +31.6% | |
| 2024 | 108 | -29.9% | |
| 2025 | 133 | +23.1% |
For the 20 building fires Elk River departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 183 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 | 41 | 22.4% | |
| 2 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 15 | 8.2% | |
| 3 | Cooking area, kitchen | 13 | 7.1% | |
| 4 | Undetermined | 13 | 7.1% | |
| 5 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 12 | 6.6% | |
| 6 | Outside area, other | 12 | 6.6% | |
| 7 | Storage area, other | 8 | 4.4% | |
| 8 | Wildland, woods | 8 | 4.4% | |
| 9 | Vehicle area, other | 7 | 3.8% | |
| 10 | Structural area, other | 5 | 2.7% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 49 | 26.8% |
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 Elk River mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 63 | 34.4% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 27 | 14.8% | |
| 3 | Arcing | 19 | 10.4% | |
| 4 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 14 | 7.7% | |
| 5 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 11 | 6.0% | |
| 6 | Heat source: other | 9 | 4.9% | |
| 7 | Hot ember or ash | 5 | 2.7% | |
| 8 | Fireworks | 5 | 2.7% | |
| 9 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 4 | 2.2% | |
| 10 | Cigarette | 4 | 2.2% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 22 | 12.0% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Elk River departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 99% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $200,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $20,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $15,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $10,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $10,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $5,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $5,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $3,000 | Fires in structures other than in a building | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Elk River sits below the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 26,594 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | Debris and open burning | 8,513 | 21.3 mi | |
| 2009 | Arson/incendiarism | 2,550 | 22.2 mi | |
| 1992 | Debris and open burning | 1,737 | 42.7 mi | |
| 1996 | Recreation and ceremony | 1,460 | 46.7 mi | |
| 1996 | Debris and open burning | 1,299 | 10.3 mi | |
| 2003 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,250 | 45.2 mi | |
| 2004 | Recreation and ceremony | 1,000 | 38.8 mi | |
| 2004 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 835 | 38.9 mi | |
| 2004 | Debris and open burning | 710 | 43.1 mi | |
| 1993 | Arson/incendiarism | 680 | 44.2 mi | |
| 1993 | Arson/incendiarism | 640 | 39.2 mi | |
| 1992 | Arson/incendiarism | 600 | 43.2 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 | 55330 | 653 |
Six Minnesota cities with population within ±25% of Elk River. 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.