In 2025, fire departments serving Oak Park Heights responded to 25 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $25K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Power line down lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 80% of all calls.
Jul peaks. Feb dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
126 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2024. $160K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 20 | — | |
| 2022 | 18 | -10.0% | |
| 2023 | 25 | +38.9% | |
| 2024 | 38 | +52.0% | |
| 2025 | 25 | -34.2% |
For the 1 building fires Oak Park Heights departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 18 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 | 8 | 44.4% | |
| 2 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 3 | 16.7% | |
| 3 | Cooking area, kitchen | 1 | 5.6% | |
| 4 | Bathroom, checkroom, lavatory, locker room | 1 | 5.6% | |
| 5 | Duct: hvac, cable, exhaust, heating, or AC | 1 | 5.6% | |
| 6 | Wall assembly | 1 | 5.6% | |
| 7 | Roof surface: exterior | 1 | 5.6% | |
| 8 | Operator/passenger area of transportation equip. | 1 | 5.6% | |
| 9 | Separate operator/control area of transportation | 1 | 5.6% |
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 Oak Park Heights mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 7 | 38.9% | |
| 2 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 4 | 22.2% | |
| 3 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 4 | 22.2% | |
| 4 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 1 | 5.6% | |
| 5 | Hot ember or ash | 1 | 5.6% | |
| 6 | Candle | 1 | 5.6% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Oak Park Heights departments in 2025. These 5 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $25,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $10,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $5,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $500 | Dumpster or other outside trash receptacle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $250 | Outside equipment fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Oak Park Heights sits below the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 16,351 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | Debris and open burning | 8,513 | 24.9 mi | |
| 2009 | Arson/incendiarism | 2,550 | 23.0 mi | |
| 2004 | Recreation and ceremony | 1,000 | 24.8 mi | |
| 2000 | Smoking | 420 | 30.0 mi | |
| 2010 | Equipment and vehicle use | 336 | 29.1 mi | |
| 1999 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 306 | 28.6 mi | |
| 2005 | Debris and open burning | 260 | 9.5 mi | |
| 2004 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 250 | 21.1 mi | |
| 2007 | Recreation and ceremony | 248 | 24.9 mi | |
| 1999 | Arson/incendiarism | 217 | 21.3 mi | |
| 1995 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 200 | 27.4 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 200 | 21.6 mi |
Top 1 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
| # | ZIP | 5-yr incidents | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 55082 | 126 |
Six Minnesota cities with population within ±25% of Oak Park Heights. 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.