In 2025, fire departments serving Frederic responded to 34 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $750K 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 62% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Aug dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
154 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2021. $2.1M cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 39 | — | |
| 2022 | 34 | -12.8% | |
| 2023 | 28 | -17.6% | |
| 2024 | 19 | -32.1% | |
| 2025 | 34 | +78.9% |
For the 5 building fires Frederic 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 | Wildland, woods | 8 | 16.0% | |
| 2 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 6 | 12.0% | |
| 3 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 5 | 10.0% | |
| 4 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 4 | 8.0% | |
| 5 | Heating room or area, water heater area | 4 | 8.0% | |
| 6 | Vehicle area, other | 3 | 6.0% | |
| 7 | Outside area, other | 3 | 6.0% | |
| 8 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 3 | 6.0% | |
| 9 | Undetermined | 2 | 4.0% | |
| 10 | Cooking area, kitchen | 1 | 2.0% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 11 | 22.0% |
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 Frederic mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 11 | 22.0% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 9 | 18.0% | |
| 3 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 5 | 10.0% | |
| 4 | Arcing | 4 | 8.0% | |
| 5 | Cigarette | 3 | 6.0% | |
| 6 | Heat source: other | 2 | 4.0% | |
| 7 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 2 | 4.0% | |
| 8 | Hot ember or ash | 2 | 4.0% | |
| 9 | Fireworks | 2 | 4.0% | |
| 10 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 2 | 4.0% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 8 | 16.0% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Frederic departments in 2025. These 2 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $750,000 | Fire, other | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $3,000 | Mobile property (vehicle) fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Frederic sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 19,032 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 | 39.9 mi | |
| 2009 | Arson/incendiarism | 2,550 | 40.4 mi | |
| 2000 | Debris and open burning | 1,350 | 23.9 mi | |
| 2004 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 835 | 33.9 mi | |
| 2013 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 656 | 16.3 mi | |
| 2000 | Smoking | 420 | 38.6 mi | |
| 2004 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 358 | 35.0 mi | |
| 2010 | Equipment and vehicle use | 336 | 46.7 mi | |
| 2004 | Arson/incendiarism | 335 | 40.6 mi | |
| 1999 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 306 | 48.3 mi | |
| 2004 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 298 | 35.7 mi | |
| 2000 | Debris and open burning | 275 | 35.7 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 | 54837 | 154 |
Six Wisconsin cities with population within ±25% of Frederic. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
2 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Frederic.
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.