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In 2025, fire departments serving Sisters responded to 136 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $250K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Unauthorized burning lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 71% of all calls.
Aug peaks. Feb dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
515 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2025. $4.3M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 97 | — | |
| 2022 | 74 | -23.7% | |
| 2023 | 106 | +43.2% | |
| 2024 | 102 | -3.8% | |
| 2025 | 136 | +33.3% |
For the 5 building fires Sisters departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 79 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 | Wildland, woods | 11 | 13.9% | |
| 2 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 10 | 12.7% | |
| 3 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 9 | 11.4% | |
| 4 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 9 | 11.4% | |
| 5 | Undetermined | 9 | 11.4% | |
| 6 | Outside area, other | 5 | 6.3% | |
| 7 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 3 | 3.8% | |
| 8 | Conduit, pipe, utility, or ventilation shaft | 3 | 3.8% | |
| 9 | Bathroom, checkroom, lavatory, locker room | 2 | 2.5% | |
| 10 | Wall assembly | 2 | 2.5% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 16 | 20.3% |
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 Sisters mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 30 | 38.0% | |
| 2 | Hot ember or ash | 9 | 11.4% | |
| 3 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 5 | 6.3% | |
| 4 | Arcing | 5 | 6.3% | |
| 5 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 5 | 6.3% | |
| 6 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 3 | 3.8% | |
| 7 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 3 | 3.8% | |
| 8 | Heat, spark from friction | 3 | 3.8% | |
| 9 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 3 | 3.8% | |
| 10 | Cigarette lighter | 2 | 2.5% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 11 | 13.9% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Sisters departments in 2025. These 4 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $250,000 | Aircraft fire | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $170,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $5,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $2,594 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Sisters sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 1,180,941 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Natural | 204,469 | 30.4 mi | |
| 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 193,573 | 48.1 mi | |
| 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 173,393 | 34.6 mi | |
| 1996 | Equipment and vehicle use | 118,230 | 48.8 mi | |
| 2003 | Natural | 79,734 | 16.9 mi | |
| 2015 | Equipment and vehicle use | 66,613 | 38.1 mi | |
| 2013 | Arson/incendiarism | 53,000 | 39.4 mi | |
| 1994 | Other causes | 33,490 | 41.8 mi | |
| 2010 | Natural | 29,500 | 36.0 mi | |
| 2012 | Natural | 26,795 | 10.7 mi | |
| 2017 | Natural | 24,025 | 9.7 mi | |
| 2002 | Natural | 23,573 | 22.9 mi |
Top 5 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 Sisters. 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.