In 2025, fire departments serving Litchfield responded to 62 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $100K 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 84% of all calls.
Jan peaks. Aug dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
237 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2025. $436K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 35 | — | |
| 2022 | 61 | +74.3% | |
| 2023 | 41 | -32.8% | |
| 2024 | 38 | -7.3% | |
| 2025 | 62 | +63.2% |
For the 14 building fires Litchfield departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 63 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 | 20 | 31.7% | |
| 2 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 4 | 6.3% | |
| 3 | Wall surface: exterior | 4 | 6.3% | |
| 4 | Interior stairway or ramp | 3 | 4.8% | |
| 5 | Processing/manufacturing area, workroom | 3 | 4.8% | |
| 6 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 3 | 4.8% | |
| 7 | Wildland, woods | 3 | 4.8% | |
| 8 | Other | 2 | 3.2% | |
| 9 | Cooking area, kitchen | 2 | 3.2% | |
| 10 | Structural area, other | 2 | 3.2% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 17 | 27.0% |
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 Litchfield mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 23 | 36.5% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 10 | 15.9% | |
| 3 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 5 | 7.9% | |
| 4 | Arcing | 5 | 7.9% | |
| 5 | Hot ember or ash | 5 | 7.9% | |
| 6 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 3 | 4.8% | |
| 7 | Heat spread from another fire, other | 3 | 4.8% | |
| 8 | Heat source: other | 2 | 3.2% | |
| 9 | Heat, spark from friction | 2 | 3.2% | |
| 10 | Lightning | 2 | 3.2% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 3 | 4.8% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Litchfield departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $100,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $500 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $100 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $100 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $100 | Grass fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $100 | Grass fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $100 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $1 | Grass fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Litchfield sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 6,501 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | Debris and open burning | 1,299 | 47.9 mi | |
| 2013 | Recreation and ceremony | 430 | 32.1 mi | |
| 2015 | Debris and open burning | 320 | 28.7 mi | |
| 1995 | Debris and open burning | 320 | 45.1 mi | |
| 2012 | Equipment and vehicle use | 264 | 26.1 mi | |
| 2020 | Debris and open burning | 260 | 34.7 mi | |
| 2003 | Debris and open burning | 250 | 43.9 mi | |
| 2002 | Arson/incendiarism | 240 | 37.4 mi | |
| 1993 | Debris and open burning | 235 | 46.8 mi | |
| 1997 | Arson/incendiarism | 231 | 27.5 mi | |
| 1999 | Arson/incendiarism | 229 | 27.5 mi | |
| 1997 | Debris and open burning | 225 | 27.8 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 | 55355 | 237 |
Six Minnesota cities with population within ±25% of Litchfield. 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.