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In 2025, fire departments serving Sheridan responded to 96 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $400K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Authorized controlled burning lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 47% of all calls.
Jul peaks. Feb dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
328 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2025. $1.6M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 68 | — | |
| 2022 | 49 | -27.9% | |
| 2023 | 58 | +18.4% | |
| 2024 | 57 | -1.7% | |
| 2025 | 96 | +68.4% |
For the 7 building fires Sheridan departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 57 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 | 26.3% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 13 | 22.8% | |
| 3 | Other | 3 | 5.3% | |
| 4 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 3 | 5.3% | |
| 5 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 3 | 5.3% | |
| 6 | Outside area, other | 3 | 5.3% | |
| 7 | Cooking area, kitchen | 2 | 3.5% | |
| 8 | Cargo/trunk area - all vehicles | 2 | 3.5% | |
| 9 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 2 | 3.5% | |
| 10 | Courtyard, patio, porch, terrace | 2 | 3.5% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 9 | 15.8% |
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 Sheridan mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 30 | 52.6% | |
| 2 | Heat source: other | 4 | 7.0% | |
| 3 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 4 | 7.0% | |
| 4 | Arcing | 4 | 7.0% | |
| 5 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 3 | 5.3% | |
| 6 | Cigarette | 2 | 3.5% | |
| 7 | Cigarette lighter | 2 | 3.5% | |
| 8 | Flying brand, ember, spark | 2 | 3.5% | |
| 9 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 1 | 1.8% | |
| 10 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 1 | 1.8% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 4 | 7.0% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Sheridan departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $400,000 | Fires in structures other than in a building | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $325,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 3 | $225,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $10,000 | Cultivated grain or crop fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $5,000 | Camper or recreational vehicle (RV) fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $2,000 | Cultivated grain or crop fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $1,500 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $1,000 | Cooking fire, confined to container | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Sheridan sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 16,551 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Natural | 7,500 | 48.6 mi | |
| 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,584 | 42.0 mi | |
| 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,552 | 25.2 mi | |
| 2020 | Power generation/transmission/distribution | 532 | 38.8 mi | |
| 2003 | Debris and open burning | 376 | 22.9 mi | |
| 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 301 | 36.7 mi | |
| 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 281 | 21.9 mi | |
| 2015 | Recreation and ceremony | 215 | 9.2 mi | |
| 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 211 | 30.8 mi | |
| 2016 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 202 | 35.5 mi | |
| 2019 | Debris and open burning | 184 | 46.9 mi | |
| 1998 | Equipment and vehicle use | 175 | 25.8 mi |
Top 4 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six Oregon cities with population within ±25% of Sheridan. 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.