In 2025, fire departments serving Mequon responded to 127 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $300K 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 66% of all calls.
Aug peaks. Dec dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
576 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2024. $2.6M cumulative property loss. 2 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 98 | — | |
| 2022 | 89 | -9.2% | |
| 2023 | 115 | +29.2% | |
| 2024 | 147 | +27.8% | |
| 2025 | 127 | -13.6% |
For the 19 building fires Mequon departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 81 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 | 17.3% | |
| 2 | Cooking area, kitchen | 10 | 12.3% | |
| 3 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 6 | 7.4% | |
| 4 | Outside area, other | 6 | 7.4% | |
| 5 | Undetermined | 6 | 7.4% | |
| 6 | Vehicle area, other | 5 | 6.2% | |
| 7 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 4 | 4.9% | |
| 8 | Storage area, other | 4 | 4.9% | |
| 9 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 3 | 3.7% | |
| 10 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 3 | 3.7% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 20 | 24.7% |
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 Mequon mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 20 | 24.7% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 18 | 22.2% | |
| 3 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 6 | 7.4% | |
| 4 | Arcing | 6 | 7.4% | |
| 5 | Heat source: other | 4 | 4.9% | |
| 6 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 3 | 3.7% | |
| 7 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 3 | 3.7% | |
| 8 | Hot ember or ash | 3 | 3.7% | |
| 9 | Heat, spark from friction | 2 | 2.5% | |
| 10 | Cigarette | 2 | 2.5% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 14 | 17.3% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Mequon departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 99% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $300,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $200,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $10,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $10,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $10,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $7,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $5,000 | Cooking fire, confined to container | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $4,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Mequon sits below the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 6,869 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,100 | 43.1 mi | |
| 1994 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,015 | 42.6 mi | |
| 2006 | Debris and open burning | 612 | 46.9 mi | |
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 508 | 45.1 mi | |
| 2014 | Debris and open burning | 364 | 40.8 mi | |
| 2002 | Natural | 360 | 35.8 mi | |
| 2002 | Arson/incendiarism | 325 | 39.0 mi | |
| 2005 | Debris and open burning | 280 | 38.1 mi | |
| 2012 | Arson/incendiarism | 254 | 49.0 mi | |
| 2018 | Debris and open burning | 252 | 42.1 mi | |
| 2003 | Debris and open burning | 250 | 36.7 mi | |
| 2010 | Natural | 200 | 25.6 mi |
Top 3 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six Wisconsin cities with population within ±25% of Mequon. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
2 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Mequon.
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.