In 2025, fire departments serving Maquoketa responded to 52 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $105K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Building fires lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 58% of all calls.
Apr peaks. Dec dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
260 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2024. $3.4M cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 40 | — | |
| 2022 | 43 | +7.5% | |
| 2023 | 56 | +30.2% | |
| 2024 | 69 | +23.2% | |
| 2025 | 52 | -24.6% |
For the 10 building fires Maquoketa departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 118 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 | 28 | 23.7% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 20 | 16.9% | |
| 3 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 20 | 16.9% | |
| 4 | Wildland, woods | 9 | 7.6% | |
| 5 | Wall surface: exterior | 5 | 4.2% | |
| 6 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 5 | 4.2% | |
| 7 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 3 | 2.5% | |
| 8 | Exterior balcony, unenclosed porch | 3 | 2.5% | |
| 9 | Operator/passenger area of transportation equip. | 3 | 2.5% | |
| 10 | Outside area, other | 3 | 2.5% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 19 | 16.1% |
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 Maquoketa mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 58 | 49.2% | |
| 2 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 10 | 8.5% | |
| 3 | Flying brand, ember, spark | 9 | 7.6% | |
| 4 | Hot ember or ash | 6 | 5.1% | |
| 5 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 6 | 5.1% | |
| 6 | Heat from direct flame, convection currents | 6 | 5.1% | |
| 7 | Arcing | 5 | 4.2% | |
| 8 | Cigarette lighter | 4 | 3.4% | |
| 9 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 3 | 2.5% | |
| 10 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 2 | 1.7% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 9 | 7.6% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Maquoketa departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 95% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $105,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $20,000 | Off-road vehicle or heavy equipment fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $20,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $15,000 | Off-road vehicle or heavy equipment fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $5,000 | Outside storage fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $5,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $5,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $5,000 | Mobile property (vehicle) fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Maquoketa sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 4,765 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Debris and open burning | 1,500 | 30.2 mi | |
| 2015 | Debris and open burning | 640 | 29.0 mi | |
| 2012 | Debris and open burning | 400 | 47.1 mi | |
| 2014 | Recreation and ceremony | 265 | 29.5 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 200 | 41.2 mi | |
| 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 200 | 18.5 mi | |
| 2015 | Debris and open burning | 195 | 42.1 mi | |
| 2018 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 165 | 48.2 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 150 | 32.4 mi | |
| 2014 | Debris and open burning | 150 | 25.0 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 100 | 8.2 mi | |
| 2013 | Debris and open burning | 80 | 5.8 mi |
Top 2 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six Iowa cities with population within ±25% of Maquoketa. 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.