In 2025, fire departments serving Houghton Lake responded to 157 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $500K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Power line down lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 80% of all calls.
Feb peaks. Jan dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
746 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2022. $3.4M cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 145 | — | |
| 2022 | 187 | +29.0% | |
| 2023 | 127 | -32.1% | |
| 2024 | 130 | +2.4% | |
| 2025 | 157 | +20.8% |
For the 18 building fires Houghton Lake departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 96 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 | 30 | 31.2% | |
| 2 | Undetermined | 26 | 27.1% | |
| 3 | Outside area, other | 6 | 6.2% | |
| 4 | Attic: vacant, crawl space above top story, cupola | 4 | 4.2% | |
| 5 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 4 | 4.2% | |
| 6 | Cooking area, kitchen | 3 | 3.1% | |
| 7 | Wildland, woods | 3 | 3.1% | |
| 8 | Other | 2 | 2.1% | |
| 9 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 2 | 2.1% | |
| 10 | Heating room or area, water heater area | 2 | 2.1% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 14 | 14.6% |
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 Houghton Lake mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 69 | 71.9% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 8 | 8.3% | |
| 3 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 3 | 3.1% | |
| 4 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 3 | 3.1% | |
| 5 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 2 | 2.1% | |
| 6 | Hot ember or ash | 2 | 2.1% | |
| 7 | Cigarette | 2 | 2.1% | |
| 8 | Heat source: other | 1 | 1.0% | |
| 9 | Heat, spark from friction | 1 | 1.0% | |
| 10 | Fireworks | 1 | 1.0% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 4 | 4.2% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Houghton Lake departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 99% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $500,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $100,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $30,000 | Off-road vehicle or heavy equipment fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $20,000 | Fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $10,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $6,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $5,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $4,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Houghton Lake sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 37,898 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | Debris and open burning | 8,586 | 26.1 mi | |
| 2006 | Debris and open burning | 5,818 | 31.1 mi | |
| 2000 | Recreation and ceremony | 5,200 | 39.5 mi | |
| 2016 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,250 | 38.8 mi | |
| 2018 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,900 | 36.4 mi | |
| 2005 | Equipment and vehicle use | 1,557 | 8.3 mi | |
| 2008 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 1,345 | 22.6 mi | |
| 1998 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,238 | 23.3 mi | |
| 2010 | Debris and open burning | 1,040 | 23.6 mi | |
| 1999 | Equipment and vehicle use | 1,035 | 40.3 mi | |
| 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 844 | 30.9 mi | |
| 1999 | Equipment and vehicle use | 840 | 40.3 mi |
Top 7 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six Michigan cities with population within ±25% of Houghton Lake. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
3 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Houghton Lake.
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.