In 2025, fire departments serving Hinckley responded to 68 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 75% of all calls.
Apr peaks. Nov dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
261 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2025. $2.4M cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 48 | — | |
| 2022 | 58 | +20.8% | |
| 2023 | 39 | -32.8% | |
| 2024 | 48 | +23.1% | |
| 2025 | 68 | +41.7% |
For the 19 building fires Hinckley departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 85 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 | 25 | 29.4% | |
| 2 | Undetermined | 12 | 14.1% | |
| 3 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 6 | 7.1% | |
| 4 | Cooking area, kitchen | 4 | 4.7% | |
| 5 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 4 | 4.7% | |
| 6 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 3 | 3.5% | |
| 7 | Attic: vacant, crawl space above top story, cupola | 3 | 3.5% | |
| 8 | Function area, other | 2 | 2.4% | |
| 9 | Bedroom - 5+ persons; including barrack/dormitory | 2 | 2.4% | |
| 10 | Bathroom, checkroom, lavatory, locker room | 2 | 2.4% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 22 | 25.9% |
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 Hinckley mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 41 | 48.2% | |
| 2 | Undetermined | 19 | 22.4% | |
| 3 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 4 | 4.7% | |
| 4 | Hot ember or ash | 4 | 4.7% | |
| 5 | Cigarette | 4 | 4.7% | |
| 6 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 3 | 3.5% | |
| 7 | Chemical reaction | 2 | 2.4% | |
| 8 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 1 | 1.2% | |
| 9 | Arcing | 1 | 1.2% | |
| 10 | Heat, spark from friction | 1 | 1.2% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 5 | 5.9% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Hinckley departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 95% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $250,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $180,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $125,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $25,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $20,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $17,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $15,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $15,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Hinckley sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 23,692 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 | 49.3 mi | |
| 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 3,200 | 48.9 mi | |
| 1996 | Recreation and ceremony | 1,460 | 29.0 mi | |
| 2000 | Debris and open burning | 1,350 | 22.6 mi | |
| 1997 | Arson/incendiarism | 930 | 44.0 mi | |
| 2004 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 835 | 17.5 mi | |
| 1999 | Equipment and vehicle use | 700 | 19.6 mi | |
| 2013 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 656 | 17.6 mi | |
| 1993 | Arson/incendiarism | 640 | 43.0 mi | |
| 1997 | Debris and open burning | 640 | 38.7 mi | |
| 2007 | Equipment and vehicle use | 487 | 49.7 mi | |
| 2000 | Smoking | 420 | 44.7 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 | 55037 | 261 |
Six Minnesota cities with population within ±25% of Hinckley. 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.