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.
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In 2025, fire departments serving Idaho Springs responded to 42 fire and hazmat incidents . Here's the full picture.
Gas leak (natural gas or LPG) lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 78% of all calls.
Feb peaks. Nov dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
295 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2024. $143K cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 61 | — | |
| 2022 | 61 | +0.0% | |
| 2023 | 50 | -18.0% | |
| 2024 | 81 | +62.0% | |
| 2025 | 42 | -48.1% |
For the 1 building fires Idaho Springs departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 88 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 | 22 | 25.0% | |
| 2 | Undetermined | 14 | 15.9% | |
| 3 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 7 | 8.0% | |
| 4 | Wildland, woods | 7 | 8.0% | |
| 5 | Vehicle area, other | 6 | 6.8% | |
| 6 | Outside area, other | 6 | 6.8% | |
| 7 | Cooking area, kitchen | 3 | 3.4% | |
| 8 | Other | 2 | 2.3% | |
| 9 | Duct: hvac, cable, exhaust, heating, or AC | 2 | 2.3% | |
| 10 | Structural area, other | 2 | 2.3% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 17 | 19.3% |
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 Idaho Springs mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 27 | 30.7% | |
| 2 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 16 | 18.2% | |
| 3 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 5 | 5.7% | |
| 4 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 5 | 5.7% | |
| 5 | Arcing | 4 | 4.5% | |
| 6 | Heat, spark from friction | 4 | 4.5% | |
| 7 | Hot ember or ash | 4 | 4.5% | |
| 8 | Heat from direct flame, convection currents | 4 | 4.5% | |
| 9 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 3 | 3.4% | |
| 10 | Cigarette lighter | 3 | 3.4% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 13 | 14.8% |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Idaho Springs sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 245,283 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 137,760 | 47.7 mi | |
| 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 14,833 | 30.8 mi | |
| 1996 | Recreation and ceremony | 11,875 | 29.4 mi | |
| 2000 | Smoking | 10,800 | 23.7 mi | |
| 2000 | Recreation and ceremony | 10,599 | 49.2 mi | |
| 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 10,106 | 29.0 mi | |
| 2010 | Debris and open burning | 6,382 | 21.1 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 5,200 | 22.5 mi | |
| 2002 | Equipment and vehicle use | 4,348 | 37.9 mi | |
| 2012 | Debris and open burning | 4,142 | 26.1 mi | |
| 2002 | Natural | 4,085 | 37.9 mi | |
| 2003 | Power generation/transmission/distribution | 3,869 | 27.0 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 | 80452 | 295 |
Six Colorado cities with population within ±25% of Idaho Springs. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Idaho Springs.
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.