In 2025, fire departments serving Rochester responded to 110 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $7K 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 51% of all calls.
Apr peaks. Sep dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
633 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2024. $807K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 108 | — | |
| 2022 | 149 | +38.0% | |
| 2023 | 101 | -32.2% | |
| 2024 | 165 | +63.4% | |
| 2025 | 110 | -33.3% |
For the 14 building fires Rochester departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 155 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 | 63 | 40.6% | |
| 2 | Outside area, other | 24 | 15.5% | |
| 3 | Other | 12 | 7.7% | |
| 4 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 12 | 7.7% | |
| 5 | Wildland, woods | 10 | 6.5% | |
| 6 | Vehicle area, other | 9 | 5.8% | |
| 7 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 5 | 3.2% | |
| 8 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 3 | 1.9% | |
| 9 | Cooking area, kitchen | 2 | 1.3% | |
| 10 | Equipment or service area, other | 2 | 1.3% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 13 | 8.4% |
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 Rochester mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 101 | 65.2% | |
| 2 | Arcing | 9 | 5.8% | |
| 3 | Hot ember or ash | 9 | 5.8% | |
| 4 | Heat source: other | 8 | 5.2% | |
| 5 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 8 | 5.2% | |
| 6 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 4 | 2.6% | |
| 7 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 4 | 2.6% | |
| 8 | Heat spread from another fire, other | 4 | 2.6% | |
| 9 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 3 | 1.9% | |
| 10 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 1 | 0.6% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 4 | 2.6% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Rochester departments in 2025. These 4 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $7,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $5,000 | Camper or recreational vehicle (RV) fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $2,000 | Mobile property (vehicle) fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $1 | Outside rubbish, trash or waste fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Rochester sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 2 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 35 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Recreation and ceremony | 20 | 48.7 mi | |
| 2002 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 15 | 21.8 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 Indiana cities with population within ±25% of Rochester. 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.