In 2025, fire departments serving Fall Creek responded to 23 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $250K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Building fires lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 65% of all calls.
Apr peaks. Sep dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
159 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2022. $5.0M cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 34 | — | |
| 2022 | 39 | +14.7% | |
| 2023 | 25 | -35.9% | |
| 2024 | 38 | +52.0% | |
| 2025 | 23 | -39.5% |
For the 5 building fires Fall Creek departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 50 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 | 22.0% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 7 | 14.0% | |
| 3 | Cooking area, kitchen | 3 | 6.0% | |
| 4 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 3 | 6.0% | |
| 5 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 2 | 4.0% | |
| 6 | Structural area, other | 2 | 4.0% | |
| 7 | Roof surface: exterior | 2 | 4.0% | |
| 8 | Outside area, other | 2 | 4.0% | |
| 9 | Railroad right of way: on or near | 2 | 4.0% | |
| 10 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 2 | 4.0% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 14 | 28.0% |
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 Fall Creek mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 19 | 38.0% | |
| 2 | Heat source: other | 5 | 10.0% | |
| 3 | Heat, spark from friction | 5 | 10.0% | |
| 4 | Hot ember or ash | 4 | 8.0% | |
| 5 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 3 | 6.0% | |
| 6 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 2 | 4.0% | |
| 7 | Arcing | 2 | 4.0% | |
| 8 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 2 | 4.0% | |
| 9 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 2.0% | |
| 10 | Cigarette | 1 | 2.0% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 6 | 12.0% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Fall Creek departments in 2025. These 7 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $250,000 | Fire, other | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $250,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 3 | $80,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $20,000 | Mobile property (vehicle) fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $5,000 | Chimney or flue fire, confined to chimney or flue | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $2,500 | Mobile property (vehicle) fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $500 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Fall Creek sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 4,655 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,200 | 42.9 mi | |
| 1994 | Recreation and ceremony | 553 | 14.3 mi | |
| 2009 | Fireworks | 390 | 24.6 mi | |
| 2000 | Debris and open burning | 360 | 42.1 mi | |
| 1998 | Arson/incendiarism | 295 | 47.3 mi | |
| 1998 | Recreation and ceremony | 250 | 13.6 mi | |
| 2007 | Recreation and ceremony | 159 | 44.8 mi | |
| 2003 | Debris and open burning | 148 | 39.6 mi | |
| 2018 | Debris and open burning | 124 | 14.1 mi | |
| 2018 | Debris and open burning | 122 | 12.6 mi | |
| 2003 | Recreation and ceremony | 113 | 36.2 mi | |
| 2018 | Arson/incendiarism | 104 | 22.8 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 Fall Creek. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Fall Creek.
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.