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In 2025, fire departments serving Fort Garland responded to 22 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $20K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Authorized controlled burning lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 68% of all calls.
Mar peaks. May dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
128 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2022. $253K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 25 | — | |
| 2022 | 37 | +48.0% | |
| 2023 | 19 | -48.6% | |
| 2024 | 25 | +31.6% | |
| 2025 | 22 | -12.0% |
For the 3 building fires Fort Garland departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 31 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 | 7 | 22.6% | |
| 2 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 5 | 16.1% | |
| 3 | Outside area, other | 4 | 12.9% | |
| 4 | Structural area, other | 3 | 9.7% | |
| 5 | Other | 2 | 6.5% | |
| 6 | Vehicle area, other | 2 | 6.5% | |
| 7 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 2 | 6.5% | |
| 8 | Wildland, woods | 2 | 6.5% | |
| 9 | Storage room, area, tank, or bin | 1 | 3.2% | |
| 10 | Heating room or area, water heater area | 1 | 3.2% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 2 | 6.5% |
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 Fort Garland mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 10 | 32.3% | |
| 2 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 3 | 9.7% | |
| 3 | Hot ember or ash | 3 | 9.7% | |
| 4 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 3 | 9.7% | |
| 5 | Heat source: other | 2 | 6.5% | |
| 6 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 2 | 6.5% | |
| 7 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 2 | 6.5% | |
| 8 | Arcing | 2 | 6.5% | |
| 9 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 1 | 3.2% | |
| 10 | Heat, spark from friction | 1 | 3.2% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 2 | 6.5% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Fort Garland departments in 2025. These 3 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $20,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $5,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $500 | Outside rubbish fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Fort Garland sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 209,160 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | Arson/incendiarism | 107,995 | 9.2 mi | |
| 2002 | Natural | 33,000 | 36.0 mi | |
| 2006 | Natural | 13,820 | 10.8 mi | |
| 2013 | Natural | 13,572 | 27.9 mi | |
| 2002 | Natural | 6,275 | 37.6 mi | |
| 2010 | Natural | 6,249 | 26.4 mi | |
| 2010 | Debris and open burning | 5,100 | 34.9 mi | |
| 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 3,825 | 33.8 mi | |
| 2001 | Natural | 3,500 | 40.6 mi | |
| 2000 | Debris and open burning | 3,124 | 18.1 mi | |
| 2019 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,183 | 33.2 mi | |
| 2016 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,000 | 39.5 mi |
Top 4 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six Colorado cities with population within ±25% of Fort Garland. 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.