In 2025, fire departments serving Olivia responded to 16 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $20K 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 87% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Jan dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
84 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023. $382K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 11 | — | |
| 2022 | 18 | +63.6% | |
| 2023 | 24 | +33.3% | |
| 2024 | 15 | -37.5% | |
| 2025 | 16 | +6.7% |
For the 2 building fires Olivia departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 22 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 | 36.4% | |
| 2 | Other | 3 | 13.6% | |
| 3 | Undetermined | 3 | 13.6% | |
| 4 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 2 | 9.1% | |
| 5 | Heating room or area, water heater area | 1 | 4.5% | |
| 6 | Attic: vacant, crawl space above top story, cupola | 1 | 4.5% | |
| 7 | Wall assembly | 1 | 4.5% | |
| 8 | Roof surface: exterior | 1 | 4.5% | |
| 9 | Railroad right of way: on or near | 1 | 4.5% | |
| 10 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 1 | 4.5% |
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 Olivia mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Arcing | 6 | 27.3% | |
| 2 | Undetermined | 6 | 27.3% | |
| 3 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 2 | 9.1% | |
| 4 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 2 | 9.1% | |
| 5 | Heat source: other | 1 | 4.5% | |
| 6 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 4.5% | |
| 7 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 1 | 4.5% | |
| 8 | Heat, spark from friction | 1 | 4.5% | |
| 9 | Hot ember or ash | 1 | 4.5% | |
| 10 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 1 | 4.5% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Olivia departments in 2025. These 2 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $20,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $3,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Olivia sits below the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 4,300 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 | 847 | 46.9 mi | |
| 2013 | Recreation and ceremony | 430 | 32.3 mi | |
| 2012 | Equipment and vehicle use | 264 | 43.3 mi | |
| 2002 | Arson/incendiarism | 240 | 42.7 mi | |
| 1997 | Arson/incendiarism | 231 | 35.4 mi | |
| 1999 | Arson/incendiarism | 229 | 35.4 mi | |
| 2015 | Debris and open burning | 217 | 33.8 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 180 | 26.6 mi | |
| 2012 | Equipment and vehicle use | 170 | 38.6 mi | |
| 2003 | Debris and open burning | 168 | 43.0 mi | |
| 2000 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 150 | 48.6 mi | |
| 2020 | Arson/incendiarism | 130 | 40.7 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 | 56277 | 84 |
Six Minnesota cities with population within ±25% of Olivia. 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.