Senators Warn Federal Firefighting Budget Nearly Exhausted With Fire Season Not Over
Five senators told Interior and USDA the $6 billion FY2026 fire suppression budget was nearly spent by Sept. 2, citing staffing gaps and firefighter deaths.
In 2025, fire departments serving Hayden responded to 39 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $3K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Fire, other lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 62% of all calls.
Jul peaks. Mar dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
124 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2025. $877K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 20 | — | |
| 2022 | 21 | +5.0% | |
| 2023 | 21 | +0.0% | |
| 2024 | 23 | +9.5% | |
| 2025 | 39 | +69.6% |
For the 3 building fires Hayden departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 36 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 | 6 | 16.7% | |
| 2 | Outside area, other | 6 | 16.7% | |
| 3 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 5 | 13.9% | |
| 4 | Undetermined | 4 | 11.1% | |
| 5 | Other | 2 | 5.6% | |
| 6 | Vehicle area, other | 2 | 5.6% | |
| 7 | Entrance way, lobby | 1 | 2.8% | |
| 8 | Cooking area, kitchen | 1 | 2.8% | |
| 9 | Bathroom, checkroom, lavatory, locker room | 1 | 2.8% | |
| 10 | Storage area, other | 1 | 2.8% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 7 | 19.4% |
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 Hayden mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Arcing | 9 | 25.0% | |
| 2 | Undetermined | 9 | 25.0% | |
| 3 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 5 | 13.9% | |
| 4 | Heat source: other | 3 | 8.3% | |
| 5 | Lightning | 3 | 8.3% | |
| 6 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 2 | 5.6% | |
| 7 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 2 | 5.6% | |
| 8 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 2 | 5.6% | |
| 9 | Heat, spark from friction | 1 | 2.8% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Hayden departments in 2025. These 1 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $3,000 | Off-road vehicle or heavy equipment fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Hayden sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 284,249 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Recreation and ceremony | 38,380 | 45.6 mi | |
| 2018 | Recreation and ceremony | 28,584 | 42.7 mi | |
| 2008 | Natural | 25,385 | 44.8 mi | |
| 2020 | Natural | 20,517 | 25.3 mi | |
| 2018 | Natural | 20,120 | 35.7 mi | |
| 2018 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 19,946 | 37.4 mi | |
| 2014 | Equipment and vehicle use | 19,569 | 45.4 mi | |
| 2002 | Natural | 17,056 | 34.0 mi | |
| 2002 | Natural | 16,852 | 31.8 mi | |
| 2002 | Natural | 14,403 | 28.5 mi | |
| 2010 | Natural | 7,917 | 45.3 mi | |
| 2018 | Natural | 5,967 | 44.6 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 Colorado cities with population within ±25% of Hayden. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
2 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Hayden.
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.