In 2025, fire departments serving Prescott responded to 34 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $250K 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.
Jul peaks. Aug dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
116 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2025. $361K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 23 | — | |
| 2022 | 23 | +0.0% | |
| 2023 | 18 | -21.7% | |
| 2024 | 18 | +0.0% | |
| 2025 | 34 | +88.9% |
For the 7 building fires Prescott departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 30 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 | 30.0% | |
| 2 | Laundry area, wash house (laundry) | 2 | 6.7% | |
| 3 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 2 | 6.7% | |
| 4 | Fuel tank, fuel line | 2 | 6.7% | |
| 5 | Exterior, exposed surface | 2 | 6.7% | |
| 6 | Exterior stairway, ramp, or fire escape | 1 | 3.3% | |
| 7 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 1 | 3.3% | |
| 8 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 1 | 3.3% | |
| 9 | Cooking area, kitchen | 1 | 3.3% | |
| 10 | Bathroom, checkroom, lavatory, locker room | 1 | 3.3% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 8 | 26.7% |
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 Prescott mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 14 | 46.7% | |
| 2 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 7 | 23.3% | |
| 3 | Heat source: other | 3 | 10.0% | |
| 4 | Hot ember or ash | 2 | 6.7% | |
| 5 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 1 | 3.3% | |
| 6 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 3.3% | |
| 7 | Cigarette lighter | 1 | 3.3% | |
| 8 | Candle | 1 | 3.3% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Prescott departments in 2025. These 5 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $250,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $50,000 | Water vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $20,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $5,000 | Trash or rubbish fire, contained | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $1,000 | Special outside fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Prescott sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 16,318 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 | 42.2 mi | |
| 2009 | Arson/incendiarism | 2,550 | 40.2 mi | |
| 2004 | Recreation and ceremony | 1,000 | 22.0 mi | |
| 2000 | Smoking | 420 | 47.6 mi | |
| 2010 | Equipment and vehicle use | 336 | 44.3 mi | |
| 1999 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 306 | 43.2 mi | |
| 2005 | Debris and open burning | 260 | 21.1 mi | |
| 2004 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 250 | 34.6 mi | |
| 2007 | Recreation and ceremony | 248 | 42.9 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 225 | 43.0 mi | |
| 1999 | Arson/incendiarism | 217 | 35.1 mi | |
| 1995 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 200 | 24.0 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 | 54021 | 116 |
Six Wisconsin cities with population within ±25% of Prescott. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Prescott.
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.