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2025 Annual Fire Report

Fires in Sonora, California

In 2025, fire departments serving Sonora responded to 103 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $6K building blaze. Here's the full picture.

Updated Sep 27, 2026 Grade C Peak yr 2021 Tuolumne County 4,963 residents 0 reporting departments 825 5-yr
Total incidents
103
-39.8% vs 2024
Building fires
7
Residential 57% Other 43%
Property loss
$23K
$18K structure · $5K contents
Deaths & injuries
0 / 1
0 civilian deaths · 0 civ injuries · 1 firefighter injuries
01 The mix

What kinds of fires happen here?

Grass fire lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 48% of all calls.

103
Total Incidents
Grass fire 11 10.7%
Brush, or brush and grass mixture fire 10 9.7%
Gas leak (natural gas or LPG) 10 9.7%
Authorized controlled burning 10 9.7%
Passenger vehicle fire 8 7.8%
All other categories 54 52.4%
02 Seasonality

When do fires happen?

Jan peaks. Dec dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.

Jan 17
Feb 11
Mar 4
Apr 3
May 12
Jun 11
Jul 10
Aug 17
Sep 9
Oct 3
Nov 5
Dec 1
Fewer
More
2b Five-year trend

Year over year in Sonora

825 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2021. $2.1M cumulative property loss.

YearIncidentsYoY 
2021 201 —
2022 178 -11.4%
2023 172 -3.4%
2024 171 -0.6%
2025 103 -39.8%
03 Cause of ignition

What sparks building fires?

For the 7 building fires Sonora departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.

Unintentional
50%
9
Cause undetermined
17%
3
Intentional / arson
0%
0
Equipment / heat source failure
22%
4
Under investigation
11%
2
Act of nature (lightning)
0%
0
3b Where fires start

Where do fires start in Sonora?

NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 183 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 originCountShare 
1 Undetermined 37 20.2%
2 Engine area, running gear, wheel area 30 16.4%
3 Outside area, other 20 10.9%
4 Other 13 7.1%
5 Cooking area, kitchen 12 6.6%
6 Vehicle area, other 7 3.8%
7 Highway, parking lot, street: on or near 7 3.8%
8 Wildland, woods 7 3.8%
9 Vehicle storage area; garage, carport 5 2.7%
10 Railroad right of way: on or near 5 2.7%
11 All other areas 40 21.9%
3c What ignited it

What actually ignited the fire?

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 Sonora mix.

#Heat sourceCountShare 
1 Undetermined 121 66.1%
2 Heat source: other 14 7.7%
3 Heat from powered equipment, other 10 5.5%
4 Arcing 9 4.9%
5 Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment 5 2.7%
6 Cigarette lighter 4 2.2%
7 Heat from direct flame, convection currents 4 2.2%
8 Hot or smoldering object, other 2 1.1%
9 Molten, hot material 2 1.1%
10 Flame/torch used for lighting 2 1.1%
11 All other sources 10 5.5%
04 The biggest fires

6 fires · $18K in losses

Largest single-incident property losses reported by Sonora departments in 2025. These 6 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.

# Property loss Type Severity Status
1 $6,000 Passenger vehicle fire Significant Investigated
2 $5,000 Passenger vehicle fire Significant Investigated
3 $4,000 Fire in mobile home used as fixed residence Significant Investigated
4 $2,500 Passenger vehicle fire Significant Investigated
5 $300 Grass fire Significant Investigated
6 $200 Outside rubbish, trash or waste fire Significant Investigated
05 How Sonora compares

Sonora vs California vs the nation

Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Sonora sits above the national average for incidents per resident.

20.75
Incidents per 1,000 residents
Sonora
20.75
CA avg
5.32
US avg
7.48
1.41
Building fires per 1,000 residents
Sonora
1.41
CA avg
0.32
US avg
0.85
0
Civilian fire deaths per million
Sonora
0
CA avg
2.9
US avg
5.9
5c Wildfires nearby

Wildfires within 50 mi of Sonora

Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 803,651 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.

50 mi radius
YearCauseAcresDistance 
2013 Missing data/not specified/undetermined 255,858 18.4 mi
2018 Missing data/not specified/undetermined 96,953 35.6 mi
2017 Firearms and explosives use 81,826 26.6 mi
2015 Missing data/not specified/undetermined 70,868 30.2 mi
2018 Natural 36,450 35.5 mi
2008 Missing data/not specified/undetermined 34,091 35.6 mi
2006 Equipment and vehicle use 25,000 42.5 mi
1996 Natural 22,080 14.7 mi
1992 Missing data/not specified/undetermined 18,000 17.7 mi
2004 Equipment and vehicle use 16,823 38.5 mi
2001 Missing data/not specified/undetermined 14,280 10.6 mi
1998 Equipment and vehicle use 12,613 23.6 mi
5d Top ZIPs

Where in Sonora do fires concentrate?

Top 3 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.

#ZIP5-yr incidents 
1 95370 765
2 95327 58
3 95368 1
5e Peer cities

Cities similar to Sonora

Six California cities with population within ±25% of Sonora. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.

07 Stay prepared

Before the next Red Flag day.

A 30-minute weekend can cut your home's exposure substantially. These four checklists are a good starting point.

About this data

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.