In 2025, fire departments serving Mexico responded to 30 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $200K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Grass fire lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 77% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Feb dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
99 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2025. $36.2M cumulative property loss. 2 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 17 | — | |
| 2022 | 14 | -17.6% | |
| 2023 | 19 | +35.7% | |
| 2024 | 19 | +0.0% | |
| 2025 | 30 | +57.9% |
For the 5 building fires Mexico departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 30 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 | 6 | 20.0% | |
| 2 | Outside area, other | 5 | 16.7% | |
| 3 | Vehicle area, other | 4 | 13.3% | |
| 4 | Function area, other | 3 | 10.0% | |
| 5 | Attic: vacant, crawl space above top story, cupola | 2 | 6.7% | |
| 6 | Wall assembly | 2 | 6.7% | |
| 7 | Undetermined | 2 | 6.7% | |
| 8 | Cooking area, kitchen | 1 | 3.3% | |
| 9 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 1 | 3.3% | |
| 10 | Equipment or service area, other | 1 | 3.3% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 3 | 10.0% |
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 Mexico mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 11 | 36.7% | |
| 2 | Heat source: other | 9 | 30.0% | |
| 3 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 3 | 10.0% | |
| 4 | Heat spread from another fire, other | 2 | 6.7% | |
| 5 | Conducted heat from another fire | 2 | 6.7% | |
| 6 | Explosive, fireworks, other | 1 | 3.3% | |
| 7 | Cigarette | 1 | 3.3% | |
| 8 | Flying brand, ember, spark | 1 | 3.3% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Mexico departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $200,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $50,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $25,000 | Mobile property (vehicle) fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $15,000 | Fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $10,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $6,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $2,500 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $1,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Mexico sits below the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 5,267 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 | Debris and open burning | 1,050 | 47.1 mi | |
| 1999 | Arson/incendiarism | 835 | 46.3 mi | |
| 2018 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 685 | 38.9 mi | |
| 2005 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 265 | 42.8 mi | |
| 2019 | Power generation/transmission/distribution | 235 | 13.8 mi | |
| 1999 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 200 | 46.3 mi | |
| 2018 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 185 | 36.3 mi | |
| 2002 | Equipment and vehicle use | 150 | 44.9 mi | |
| 1999 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 150 | 46.3 mi | |
| 1994 | Arson/incendiarism | 140 | 45.5 mi | |
| 1992 | Debris and open burning | 120 | 26.3 mi | |
| 1994 | Debris and open burning | 120 | 16.7 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 Missouri cities with population within ±25% of Mexico. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
2 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Mexico.
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.