In 2025, fire departments serving Osceola responded to 33 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $2.0M 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 52% of all calls.
May peaks. Feb dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
145 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2022. $2.1M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 20 | — | |
| 2022 | 40 | +100.0% | |
| 2023 | 30 | -25.0% | |
| 2024 | 22 | -26.7% | |
| 2025 | 33 | +50.0% |
For the 3 building fires Osceola departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 38 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 | 6 | 15.8% | |
| 2 | Undetermined | 6 | 15.8% | |
| 3 | Cooking area, kitchen | 3 | 7.9% | |
| 4 | Vehicle area, other | 3 | 7.9% | |
| 5 | Exterior stairway, ramp, or fire escape | 2 | 5.3% | |
| 6 | Processing/manufacturing area, workroom | 2 | 5.3% | |
| 7 | Other | 1 | 2.6% | |
| 8 | Entrance way, lobby | 1 | 2.6% | |
| 9 | Egress/exit, other | 1 | 2.6% | |
| 10 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 1 | 2.6% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 12 | 31.6% |
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 Osceola mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 17 | 44.7% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 6 | 15.8% | |
| 3 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 4 | 10.5% | |
| 4 | Heat source: other | 2 | 5.3% | |
| 5 | Arcing | 2 | 5.3% | |
| 6 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 2 | 5.3% | |
| 7 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 1 | 2.6% | |
| 8 | Hot ember or ash | 1 | 2.6% | |
| 9 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 1 | 2.6% | |
| 10 | Lightning | 1 | 2.6% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 1 | 2.6% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Osceola departments in 2025. These 2 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $2,000,000 | Fires in structures other than in a building | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $100,000 | Off-road vehicle or heavy equipment fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Osceola sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 19,746 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 | 21.2 mi | |
| 2009 | Arson/incendiarism | 2,550 | 20.6 mi | |
| 2000 | Debris and open burning | 1,350 | 48.5 mi | |
| 2004 | Recreation and ceremony | 1,000 | 42.9 mi | |
| 2004 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 835 | 39.7 mi | |
| 2013 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 656 | 37.4 mi | |
| 2000 | Smoking | 420 | 23.4 mi | |
| 2004 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 358 | 44.3 mi | |
| 2010 | Equipment and vehicle use | 336 | 28.5 mi | |
| 2004 | Arson/incendiarism | 335 | 48.5 mi | |
| 1999 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 306 | 29.4 mi | |
| 2004 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 298 | 46.1 mi |
Top 3 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 Osceola. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Osceola.
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.