In 2025, fire departments serving Oswego responded to 33 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $50K 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 79% of all calls.
Feb peaks. Jun dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
154 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2022. $1.1M cumulative property loss. 2 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 28 | — | |
| 2022 | 33 | +17.9% | |
| 2023 | 29 | -12.1% | |
| 2024 | 31 | +6.9% | |
| 2025 | 33 | +6.5% |
For the 13 building fires Oswego departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 55 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 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 9 | 16.4% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 8 | 14.5% | |
| 3 | Cooking area, kitchen | 4 | 7.3% | |
| 4 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 4 | 7.3% | |
| 5 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 4 | 7.3% | |
| 6 | Bathroom, checkroom, lavatory, locker room | 3 | 5.5% | |
| 7 | Wall surface: exterior | 3 | 5.5% | |
| 8 | Undetermined | 3 | 5.5% | |
| 9 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 2 | 3.6% | |
| 10 | Dining room, cafeteria bar area, beverage service | 2 | 3.6% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 13 | 23.6% |
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 Oswego mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 27 | 49.1% | |
| 2 | Hot ember or ash | 6 | 10.9% | |
| 3 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 4 | 7.3% | |
| 4 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 4 | 7.3% | |
| 5 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 2 | 3.6% | |
| 6 | Arcing | 2 | 3.6% | |
| 7 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 2 | 3.6% | |
| 8 | Heat, spark from friction | 1 | 1.8% | |
| 9 | Cigarette | 1 | 1.8% | |
| 10 | Cigarette lighter | 1 | 1.8% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 5 | 9.1% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Oswego departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 99% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $50,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $40,000 | Off-road vehicle or heavy equipment fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $25,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $20,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $10,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $5,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $2,000 | Fire in mobile prop. used as a fixed struc., other | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $2,000 | Fire in mobile prop. used as a fixed struc., other | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Oswego sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 65,751 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 22,787 | 48.1 mi | |
| 2016 | Arson/incendiarism | 14,000 | 41.9 mi | |
| 2012 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 3,200 | 49.1 mi | |
| 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 3,100 | 47.2 mi | |
| 2005 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,580 | 39.2 mi | |
| 2012 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,560 | 39.8 mi | |
| 2010 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,376 | 31.9 mi | |
| 2012 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,307 | 43.4 mi | |
| 2001 | Debris and open burning | 1,300 | 38.1 mi | |
| 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,300 | 41.1 mi | |
| 2014 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,200 | 39.9 mi | |
| 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,200 | 43.9 mi |
Top 2 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six Kansas cities with population within ±25% of Oswego. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Oswego.
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.