In 2025, fire departments serving Riverton responded to 131 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $25K 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 53% of all calls.
Jan peaks. Feb dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
524 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2025. $789K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 87 | — | |
| 2022 | 88 | +1.1% | |
| 2023 | 114 | +29.5% | |
| 2024 | 104 | -8.8% | |
| 2025 | 131 | +26.0% |
For the 11 building fires Riverton departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 101 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 | 15 | 14.9% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 14 | 13.9% | |
| 3 | Outside area, other | 12 | 11.9% | |
| 4 | Other | 10 | 9.9% | |
| 5 | Cooking area, kitchen | 8 | 7.9% | |
| 6 | Operator/passenger area of transportation equip. | 5 | 5.0% | |
| 7 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 5 | 5.0% | |
| 8 | Function area, other | 2 | 2.0% | |
| 9 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 2 | 2.0% | |
| 10 | Storage room, area, tank, or bin | 2 | 2.0% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 26 | 25.7% |
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 Riverton mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 43 | 42.6% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 16 | 15.8% | |
| 3 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 8 | 7.9% | |
| 4 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 7 | 6.9% | |
| 5 | Hot ember or ash | 7 | 6.9% | |
| 6 | Heat source: other | 6 | 5.9% | |
| 7 | Arcing | 4 | 4.0% | |
| 8 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 2 | 2.0% | |
| 9 | Multiple heat sources including multiple ignitions | 2 | 2.0% | |
| 10 | Heat, spark from friction | 1 | 1.0% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 5 | 5.0% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Riverton departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 98% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $25,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $10,000 | Special outside fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $8,000 | Brush, or brush and grass mixture fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $5,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $5,000 | Brush, or brush and grass mixture fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $5,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $4,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $4,000 | Mobile property (vehicle) fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Riverton sits below the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 456,939 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Natural | 44,345 | 37.5 mi | |
| 2017 | Natural | 38,190 | 45.8 mi | |
| 2000 | Natural | 33,838 | 48.6 mi | |
| 2018 | Natural | 31,661 | 49.1 mi | |
| 2013 | Natural | 31,010 | 39.1 mi | |
| 1996 | Natural | 28,540 | 45.6 mi | |
| 2012 | Natural | 22,045 | 38.5 mi | |
| 1998 | Equipment and vehicle use | 20,700 | 45.6 mi | |
| 2018 | Natural | 18,620 | 46.1 mi | |
| 2011 | Firearms and explosives use | 16,267 | 47.8 mi | |
| 2000 | Natural | 16,116 | 36.3 mi | |
| 2016 | Natural | 15,330 | 32.9 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 Utah cities with population within ±25% of Riverton. 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.