In 2025, fire departments serving Monroe responded to 202 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $498K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Unauthorized burning lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 59% of all calls.
Jul peaks. Dec dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
1,182 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023. $2.5M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 248 | — | |
| 2022 | 262 | +5.6% | |
| 2023 | 293 | +11.8% | |
| 2024 | 177 | -39.6% | |
| 2025 | 202 | +14.1% |
For the 16 building fires Monroe departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 256 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 | 35 | 13.7% | |
| 2 | Outside area, other | 27 | 10.5% | |
| 3 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 26 | 10.2% | |
| 4 | Other | 25 | 9.8% | |
| 5 | Wildland, woods | 24 | 9.4% | |
| 6 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 23 | 9.0% | |
| 7 | Vehicle area, other | 14 | 5.5% | |
| 8 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 13 | 5.1% | |
| 9 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 6 | 2.3% | |
| 10 | Operator/passenger area of transportation equip. | 6 | 2.3% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 57 | 22.3% |
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 Monroe mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 135 | 52.7% | |
| 2 | Heat source: other | 19 | 7.4% | |
| 3 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 18 | 7.0% | |
| 4 | Arcing | 16 | 6.2% | |
| 5 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 14 | 5.5% | |
| 6 | Hot ember or ash | 9 | 3.5% | |
| 7 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 7 | 2.7% | |
| 8 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 7 | 2.7% | |
| 9 | Fireworks | 6 | 2.3% | |
| 10 | Cigarette | 6 | 2.3% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 19 | 7.4% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Monroe departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 97% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $498,215 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $146,795 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $100,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $75,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $30,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $20,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $15,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $10,000 | Fire in motor home, camper, recreational vehicle | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Monroe sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 11,131 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Natural | 3,166 | 45.4 mi | |
| 2003 | Natural | 1,097 | 43.7 mi | |
| 2006 | Natural | 969 | 49.9 mi | |
| 2009 | Natural | 750 | 43.3 mi | |
| 2008 | Natural | 602 | 43.0 mi | |
| 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 494 | 48.2 mi | |
| 2017 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 360 | 23.3 mi | |
| 2012 | Natural | 291 | 46.4 mi | |
| 1995 | Debris and open burning | 290 | 40.8 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 289 | 17.0 mi | |
| 1994 | Natural | 275 | 42.4 mi | |
| 1992 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 252 | 37.1 mi |
Top 4 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six Washington cities with population within ±25% of Monroe. 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.