In 2025, fire departments serving Orono responded to 114 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 71% of all calls.
Jul peaks. Dec dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
405 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2025. $1.6M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 64 | — | |
| 2022 | 86 | +34.4% | |
| 2023 | 62 | -27.9% | |
| 2024 | 79 | +27.4% | |
| 2025 | 114 | +44.3% |
For the 6 building fires Orono departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 37 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 | 9 | 24.3% | |
| 2 | Cooking area, kitchen | 6 | 16.2% | |
| 3 | Outside area, other | 4 | 10.8% | |
| 4 | Exterior, exposed surface | 3 | 8.1% | |
| 5 | Exterior balcony, unenclosed porch | 2 | 5.4% | |
| 6 | Wall surface: exterior | 2 | 5.4% | |
| 7 | Courtyard, patio, porch, terrace | 2 | 5.4% | |
| 8 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 2 | 5.4% | |
| 9 | Wildland, woods | 2 | 5.4% | |
| 10 | Corridor, mall | 1 | 2.7% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 4 | 10.8% |
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 Orono mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 12 | 32.4% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 7 | 18.9% | |
| 3 | Heat source: other | 5 | 13.5% | |
| 4 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 3 | 8.1% | |
| 5 | Hot ember or ash | 2 | 5.4% | |
| 6 | Fireworks | 2 | 5.4% | |
| 7 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 2.7% | |
| 8 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 1 | 2.7% | |
| 9 | Arcing | 1 | 2.7% | |
| 10 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 1 | 2.7% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 2 | 5.4% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Orono departments in 2025. These 3 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 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $500 | Trash or rubbish fire, contained | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Orono sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 18,545 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 | 32.9 mi | |
| 2009 | Arson/incendiarism | 2,550 | 32.1 mi | |
| 1996 | Debris and open burning | 1,299 | 34.6 mi | |
| 2004 | Recreation and ceremony | 1,000 | 20.4 mi | |
| 2000 | Smoking | 420 | 35.7 mi | |
| 2012 | Debris and open burning | 400 | 45.6 mi | |
| 2010 | Equipment and vehicle use | 336 | 27.3 mi | |
| 1995 | Debris and open burning | 320 | 37.8 mi | |
| 1999 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 306 | 25.3 mi | |
| 1996 | Arson/incendiarism | 290 | 46.4 mi | |
| 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 280 | 42.0 mi | |
| 2004 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 250 | 22.9 mi |
Top 6 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six Minnesota cities with population within ±25% of Orono. 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.