In 2025, fire departments serving Rothsay responded to 18 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $150K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Grass fire lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 89% of all calls.
May peaks. Sep dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
83 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2022. $301K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 18 | — | |
| 2022 | 22 | +22.2% | |
| 2023 | 13 | -40.9% | |
| 2024 | 12 | -7.7% | |
| 2025 | 18 | +50.0% |
For the 5 building fires Rothsay departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 41 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 | 10 | 24.4% | |
| 2 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 10 | 24.4% | |
| 3 | Vehicle area, other | 5 | 12.2% | |
| 4 | Undetermined | 4 | 9.8% | |
| 5 | Other | 2 | 4.9% | |
| 6 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 2 | 4.9% | |
| 7 | Entrance way, lobby | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 8 | Cooking area, kitchen | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 9 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 10 | Enclosure, pressurized air | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 4 | 9.8% |
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 Rothsay mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Heat source: other | 6 | 14.6% | |
| 2 | Heat, spark from friction | 5 | 12.2% | |
| 3 | Undetermined | 5 | 12.2% | |
| 4 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 4 | 9.8% | |
| 5 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 4 | 9.8% | |
| 6 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 4 | 9.8% | |
| 7 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 3 | 7.3% | |
| 8 | Arcing | 3 | 7.3% | |
| 9 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 10 | Hot ember or ash | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 5 | 12.2% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Rothsay departments in 2025. These 5 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $150,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $100,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $10,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $5,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $1 | Grass fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Rothsay sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 21,301 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,855 | 4.8 mi | |
| 2003 | Debris and open burning | 1,593 | 31.8 mi | |
| 2015 | Equipment and vehicle use | 1,200 | 41.9 mi | |
| 2012 | Equipment and vehicle use | 1,185 | 47.3 mi | |
| 1996 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,155 | 26.3 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,122 | 42.7 mi | |
| 2011 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,000 | 49.9 mi | |
| 1999 | Debris and open burning | 990 | 43.2 mi | |
| 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 950 | 49.3 mi | |
| 1992 | Debris and open burning | 910 | 11.2 mi | |
| 2012 | Equipment and vehicle use | 900 | 6.3 mi | |
| 2012 | Arson/incendiarism | 818 | 41.0 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 | 56579 | 83 |
Six Minnesota cities with population within ±25% of Rothsay. 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.