In 2025, fire departments serving Oostburg responded to 34 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $500K 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 74% of all calls.
Jul peaks. Jun dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
138 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2025. $588K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 24 | — | |
| 2022 | 29 | +20.8% | |
| 2023 | 22 | -24.1% | |
| 2024 | 29 | +31.8% | |
| 2025 | 34 | +17.2% |
For the 9 building fires Oostburg departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 39 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 | Outside area, other | 12 | 30.8% | |
| 2 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 4 | 10.3% | |
| 3 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 3 | 7.7% | |
| 4 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 3 | 7.7% | |
| 5 | Other | 2 | 5.1% | |
| 6 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 2 | 5.1% | |
| 7 | Structural area, other | 2 | 5.1% | |
| 8 | Vehicle area, other | 2 | 5.1% | |
| 9 | Cargo/trunk area - all vehicles | 2 | 5.1% | |
| 10 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 1 | 2.6% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 6 | 15.4% |
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 Oostburg mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 13 | 33.3% | |
| 2 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 4 | 10.3% | |
| 3 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 3 | 7.7% | |
| 4 | Arcing | 3 | 7.7% | |
| 5 | Heat source: other | 2 | 5.1% | |
| 6 | Hot ember or ash | 2 | 5.1% | |
| 7 | Match | 2 | 5.1% | |
| 8 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 2 | 5.1% | |
| 9 | Flying brand, ember, spark | 2 | 5.1% | |
| 10 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 1 | 2.6% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 5 | 12.8% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Oostburg departments in 2025. These 4 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $500,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $55,000 | Fires in structures other than in a building | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $25,000 | Cultivated grain or crop fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $1 | Fires in structures other than in a building | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Oostburg sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 4,388 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,015 | 45.3 mi | |
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 508 | 36.6 mi | |
| 2014 | Debris and open burning | 364 | 45.7 mi | |
| 2002 | Natural | 360 | 42.9 mi | |
| 2002 | Arson/incendiarism | 325 | 41.2 mi | |
| 2005 | Debris and open burning | 280 | 43.5 mi | |
| 2003 | Debris and open burning | 250 | 40.8 mi | |
| 2005 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 150 | 47.3 mi | |
| 1997 | Debris and open burning | 130 | 41.1 mi | |
| 1994 | Debris and open burning | 100 | 45.3 mi | |
| 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 100 | 46.1 mi | |
| 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 100 | 42.6 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 | 53070 | 138 |
Six Wisconsin cities with population within ±25% of Oostburg. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Oostburg.
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.