In 2025, fire departments serving Lester Prairie responded to 11 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $10K building blaze. 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 82% of all calls.
Feb peaks. Jan dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
77 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2024. $213K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 13 | — | |
| 2022 | 16 | +23.1% | |
| 2023 | 12 | -25.0% | |
| 2024 | 25 | +108.3% | |
| 2025 | 11 | -56.0% |
For the 1 building fires Lester Prairie departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 20 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 | Undetermined | 9 | 45.0% | |
| 2 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 2 | 10.0% | |
| 3 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 1 | 5.0% | |
| 4 | Bathroom, checkroom, lavatory, locker room | 1 | 5.0% | |
| 5 | Closet | 1 | 5.0% | |
| 6 | Structural area, other | 1 | 5.0% | |
| 7 | Wall assembly | 1 | 5.0% | |
| 8 | Roof surface: exterior | 1 | 5.0% | |
| 9 | Operator/passenger area of transportation equip. | 1 | 5.0% | |
| 10 | Cargo/trunk area - all vehicles | 1 | 5.0% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 1 | 5.0% |
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 Lester Prairie mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 8 | 40.0% | |
| 2 | Arcing | 3 | 15.0% | |
| 3 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 2 | 10.0% | |
| 4 | Flying brand, ember, spark | 2 | 10.0% | |
| 5 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 1 | 5.0% | |
| 6 | Hot ember or ash | 1 | 5.0% | |
| 7 | Heat from undetermined smoking material | 1 | 5.0% | |
| 8 | Match | 1 | 5.0% | |
| 9 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 1 | 5.0% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Lester Prairie departments in 2025. These 4 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $10,000 | Fires in structures other than in a building | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $8,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $500 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $20 | Dumpster or other outside trash receptacle fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Lester Prairie sits below the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 10,084 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Arson/incendiarism | 2,909 | 46.3 mi | |
| 1996 | Debris and open burning | 1,299 | 44.0 mi | |
| 2004 | Recreation and ceremony | 1,000 | 40.0 mi | |
| 2012 | Debris and open burning | 400 | 40.8 mi | |
| 2010 | Equipment and vehicle use | 336 | 46.6 mi | |
| 1995 | Debris and open burning | 320 | 44.5 mi | |
| 1999 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 306 | 44.9 mi | |
| 1996 | Arson/incendiarism | 290 | 38.2 mi | |
| 2004 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 250 | 44.7 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 225 | 46.7 mi | |
| 1997 | Debris and open burning | 225 | 36.3 mi | |
| 2000 | Equipment and vehicle use | 220 | 49.8 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 | 55354 | 77 |
Six Minnesota cities with population within ±25% of Lester Prairie. 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.