In 2025, fire departments serving Nekoosa responded to 57 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $70K 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 61% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Aug dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
333 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023. $930K cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 62 | — | |
| 2022 | 68 | +9.7% | |
| 2023 | 75 | +10.3% | |
| 2024 | 71 | -5.3% | |
| 2025 | 57 | -19.7% |
For the 16 building fires Nekoosa departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 104 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 | 22 | 21.2% | |
| 2 | Outside area, other | 14 | 13.5% | |
| 3 | Wildland, woods | 13 | 12.5% | |
| 4 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 7 | 6.7% | |
| 5 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 6 | 5.8% | |
| 6 | Other | 4 | 3.8% | |
| 7 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 4 | 3.8% | |
| 8 | Chute/container - trash, rubbish, waste | 3 | 2.9% | |
| 9 | Roof surface: exterior | 3 | 2.9% | |
| 10 | Vehicle area, other | 3 | 2.9% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 25 | 24.0% |
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 Nekoosa mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 30 | 28.8% | |
| 2 | Heat source: other | 17 | 16.3% | |
| 3 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 9 | 8.7% | |
| 4 | Hot ember or ash | 9 | 8.7% | |
| 5 | Arcing | 6 | 5.8% | |
| 6 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 5 | 4.8% | |
| 7 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 5 | 4.8% | |
| 8 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 5 | 4.8% | |
| 9 | Lightning | 5 | 4.8% | |
| 10 | Cigarette | 2 | 1.9% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 11 | 10.6% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Nekoosa departments in 2025. These 5 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $69,900 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $50,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $3,000 | Fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $2,000 | Dumpster or other outside trash receptacle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $200 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Nekoosa sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 7,870 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Debris and open burning | 3,410 | 18.4 mi | |
| 2003 | Debris and open burning | 572 | 37.0 mi | |
| 2003 | Debris and open burning | 384 | 22.0 mi | |
| 2015 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 337 | 22.6 mi | |
| 1999 | Debris and open burning | 320 | 40.8 mi | |
| 1997 | Debris and open burning | 300 | 17.0 mi | |
| 2020 | Recreation and ceremony | 234 | 19.9 mi | |
| 1996 | Smoking | 187 | 27.6 mi | |
| 2003 | Arson/incendiarism | 170 | 47.9 mi | |
| 2000 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 170 | 7.9 mi | |
| 1992 | Equipment and vehicle use | 161 | 28.1 mi | |
| 2002 | Debris and open burning | 160 | 49.2 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 Wisconsin cities with population within ±25% of Nekoosa. 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.