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In 2025, fire departments serving Jefferson responded to 69 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $305K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Unauthorized burning lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 59% of all calls.
Jul peaks. Mar dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
278 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2025. $1.9M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 55 | — | |
| 2022 | 44 | -20.0% | |
| 2023 | 43 | -2.3% | |
| 2024 | 67 | +55.8% | |
| 2025 | 69 | +3.0% |
For the 11 building fires Jefferson departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 57 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 | 14 | 24.6% | |
| 2 | Undetermined | 12 | 21.1% | |
| 3 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 3 | 5.3% | |
| 4 | Substructure area or space, crawl space | 3 | 5.3% | |
| 5 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 3 | 5.3% | |
| 6 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 2 | 3.5% | |
| 7 | Cooking area, kitchen | 2 | 3.5% | |
| 8 | Bathroom, checkroom, lavatory, locker room | 2 | 3.5% | |
| 9 | Wall assembly | 2 | 3.5% | |
| 10 | Vehicle area, other | 2 | 3.5% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 12 | 21.1% |
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 Jefferson mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 23 | 40.4% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 6 | 10.5% | |
| 3 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 6 | 10.5% | |
| 4 | Arcing | 6 | 10.5% | |
| 5 | Heat source: other | 4 | 7.0% | |
| 6 | Hot ember or ash | 3 | 5.3% | |
| 7 | Cigarette lighter | 2 | 3.5% | |
| 8 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 1 | 1.8% | |
| 9 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 1 | 1.8% | |
| 10 | Heat, spark from friction | 1 | 1.8% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 4 | 7.0% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Jefferson departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $304,890 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $50,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $30,000 | Off-road vehicle or heavy equipment fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $20,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $20,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $3,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $2,500 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $2,000 | Mobile property (vehicle) fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Jefferson sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 207,087 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 193,573 | 40.8 mi | |
| 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,584 | 40.1 mi | |
| 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,552 | 48.4 mi | |
| 2011 | Natural | 2,033 | 45.2 mi | |
| 2006 | Natural | 1,070 | 32.1 mi | |
| 2006 | Natural | 790 | 44.3 mi | |
| 2020 | Power generation/transmission/distribution | 532 | 30.7 mi | |
| 2020 | Power generation/transmission/distribution | 497 | 44.9 mi | |
| 2003 | Debris and open burning | 376 | 25.1 mi | |
| 2014 | Debris and open burning | 330 | 30.3 mi | |
| 2017 | Debris and open burning | 303 | 37.7 mi | |
| 2009 | Recreation and ceremony | 283 | 34.9 mi |
Top 4 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six Oregon cities with population within ±25% of Jefferson. 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.