In 2025, fire departments serving Socorro responded to 55 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $350K 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 55% of all calls.
Feb peaks. Nov dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
346 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023. $4.6M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 74 | — | |
| 2022 | 72 | -2.7% | |
| 2023 | 86 | +19.4% | |
| 2024 | 59 | -31.4% | |
| 2025 | 55 | -6.8% |
For the 8 building fires Socorro departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 178 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 | 60 | 33.7% | |
| 2 | Other | 20 | 11.2% | |
| 3 | Outside area, other | 19 | 10.7% | |
| 4 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 10 | 5.6% | |
| 5 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 10 | 5.6% | |
| 6 | Roof surface: exterior | 6 | 3.4% | |
| 7 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 5 | 2.8% | |
| 8 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 4 | 2.2% | |
| 9 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 4 | 2.2% | |
| 10 | Exterior balcony, unenclosed porch | 4 | 2.2% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 36 | 20.2% |
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 Socorro mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 97 | 54.5% | |
| 2 | Heat source: other | 17 | 9.6% | |
| 3 | Arcing | 8 | 4.5% | |
| 4 | Cigarette | 8 | 4.5% | |
| 5 | Match | 8 | 4.5% | |
| 6 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 7 | 3.9% | |
| 7 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 4 | 2.2% | |
| 8 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 3 | 1.7% | |
| 9 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 3 | 1.7% | |
| 10 | Hot ember or ash | 3 | 1.7% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 20 | 11.2% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Socorro departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 96% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $350,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $200,000 | Fires in structures other than in a building | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $180,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $180,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $100,000 | Camper or recreational vehicle (RV) fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $100,000 | Fires in structures other than in a building | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $45,000 | Fire in mobile home used as fixed residence | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $15,000 | Mobile property (vehicle) fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Socorro sits below the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 229,153 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Natural | 42,102 | 35.0 mi | |
| 1994 | Natural | 22,200 | 40.1 mi | |
| 2015 | Natural | 17,843 | 37.6 mi | |
| 1994 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 17,000 | 42.4 mi | |
| 2020 | Natural | 14,624 | 45.4 mi | |
| 2008 | Recreation and ceremony | 13,709 | 48.8 mi | |
| 1994 | Natural | 11,500 | 36.2 mi | |
| 1994 | Natural | 10,000 | 49.5 mi | |
| 1993 | Natural | 9,000 | 36.2 mi | |
| 2017 | Natural | 8,364 | 27.1 mi | |
| 2009 | Natural | 7,836 | 24.3 mi | |
| 2007 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 6,969 | 44.2 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 | 87801 | 346 |
Six New Mexico cities with population within ±25% of Socorro. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
2 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Socorro.
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.