In 2025, fire departments serving Roberts responded to 19 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $10K 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 63% of all calls.
Jun peaks. Jan dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
121 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023. $436K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 17 | — | |
| 2022 | 23 | +35.3% | |
| 2023 | 31 | +34.8% | |
| 2024 | 31 | +0.0% | |
| 2025 | 19 | -38.7% |
For the 2 building fires Roberts departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 32 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 | 11 | 34.4% | |
| 2 | Undetermined | 5 | 15.6% | |
| 3 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 3 | 9.4% | |
| 4 | Storage area, other | 2 | 6.2% | |
| 5 | Exterior stairway, ramp, or fire escape | 1 | 3.1% | |
| 6 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 1 | 3.1% | |
| 7 | Cooking area, kitchen | 1 | 3.1% | |
| 8 | Bathroom, checkroom, lavatory, locker room | 1 | 3.1% | |
| 9 | Equipment or service area, other | 1 | 3.1% | |
| 10 | Maintenance shop or area, paint shop or area | 1 | 3.1% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 5 | 15.6% |
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 Roberts mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 16 | 50.0% | |
| 2 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 3 | 9.4% | |
| 3 | Arcing | 3 | 9.4% | |
| 4 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 2 | 6.2% | |
| 5 | Hot ember or ash | 2 | 6.2% | |
| 6 | Heat source: other | 1 | 3.1% | |
| 7 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 3.1% | |
| 8 | Heat, spark from friction | 1 | 3.1% | |
| 9 | Molten, hot material | 1 | 3.1% | |
| 10 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 1 | 3.1% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 1 | 3.1% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Roberts departments in 2025. These 1 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $10,000 | Off-road vehicle or heavy equipment fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Roberts sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 16,601 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 | 36.8 mi | |
| 2009 | Arson/incendiarism | 2,550 | 35.0 mi | |
| 2004 | Recreation and ceremony | 1,000 | 34.5 mi | |
| 2000 | Smoking | 420 | 41.4 mi | |
| 2009 | Fireworks | 390 | 39.4 mi | |
| 2010 | Equipment and vehicle use | 336 | 41.8 mi | |
| 1999 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 306 | 41.5 mi | |
| 2005 | Debris and open burning | 260 | 5.2 mi | |
| 2004 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 250 | 34.4 mi | |
| 2007 | Recreation and ceremony | 248 | 36.1 mi | |
| 1999 | Arson/incendiarism | 217 | 34.5 mi | |
| 1995 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 200 | 37.1 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 | 54023 | 121 |
Six Wisconsin cities with population within ±25% of Roberts. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Roberts.
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.