Dome Fire Reaches 6,632 Acres in Yosemite, 40% Contained as of Oct. 3
The Dome Fire has burned 6,632 acres in Yosemite National Park and is 40% contained as of Oct. 3, with 765 personnel assigned; Glacier Point Road stays closed.
CA
In 2025, fire departments serving Los Altos responded to 87 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $1.5M 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 79% of all calls.
Aug peaks. Sep dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
540 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023. $14.0M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 132 | — | |
| 2022 | 93 | -29.5% | |
| 2023 | 135 | +45.2% | |
| 2024 | 93 | -31.1% | |
| 2025 | 87 | -6.5% |
For the 9 building fires Los Altos departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 91 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 | Cooking area, kitchen | 14 | 15.4% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 11 | 12.1% | |
| 3 | Courtyard, patio, porch, terrace | 11 | 12.1% | |
| 4 | Outside area, other | 9 | 9.9% | |
| 5 | Exterior, exposed surface | 6 | 6.6% | |
| 6 | Undetermined | 6 | 6.6% | |
| 7 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 4 | 4.4% | |
| 8 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 4 | 4.4% | |
| 9 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 3 | 3.3% | |
| 10 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 3 | 3.3% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 20 | 22.0% |
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 Los Altos mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 29 | 31.9% | |
| 2 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 9 | 9.9% | |
| 3 | Hot ember or ash | 8 | 8.8% | |
| 4 | Heat from direct flame, convection currents | 8 | 8.8% | |
| 5 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 6 | 6.6% | |
| 6 | Arcing | 6 | 6.6% | |
| 7 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 6 | 6.6% | |
| 8 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 5 | 5.5% | |
| 9 | Cigarette lighter | 3 | 3.3% | |
| 10 | Match | 2 | 2.2% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 9 | 9.9% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Los Altos departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 99% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $1,500,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $1,000,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 3 | $200,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $200,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $150,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $15,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $12,000 | Outside equipment fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $10,122 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Los Altos sits below the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 679,181 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 | 396,624 | 29.3 mi | |
| 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 86,509 | 10.1 mi | |
| 2007 | Recreation and ceremony | 47,760 | 34.5 mi | |
| 2006 | Equipment and vehicle use | 34,271 | 44.8 mi | |
| 2003 | Natural | 30,170 | 41.5 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 12,200 | 35.6 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 7,817 | 16.1 mi | |
| 2003 | Equipment and vehicle use | 6,804 | 43.0 mi | |
| 2005 | Arson/incendiarism | 6,744 | 33.2 mi | |
| 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 5,513 | 39.9 mi | |
| 2003 | Natural | 5,018 | 37.7 mi | |
| 2016 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 4,474 | 23.2 mi |
Top 6 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six California cities with population within ±25% of Los Altos. 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.