In 2025, fire departments serving Sterling responded to 56 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $50K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Power line down lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 68% of all calls.
Jan peaks. Feb dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
203 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2025. $504K cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 26 | — | |
| 2022 | 40 | +53.8% | |
| 2023 | 45 | +12.5% | |
| 2024 | 36 | -20.0% | |
| 2025 | 56 | +55.6% |
For the 3 building fires Sterling 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 | Undetermined | 13 | 31.7% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 6 | 14.6% | |
| 3 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 4 | 9.8% | |
| 4 | Cooking area, kitchen | 3 | 7.3% | |
| 5 | Other | 2 | 4.9% | |
| 6 | Exterior balcony, unenclosed porch | 2 | 4.9% | |
| 7 | Wildland, woods | 2 | 4.9% | |
| 8 | Function area, other | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 9 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 10 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 6 | 14.6% |
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 Sterling mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 27 | 65.9% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 3 | 7.3% | |
| 3 | Arcing | 3 | 7.3% | |
| 4 | Heat, spark from friction | 2 | 4.9% | |
| 5 | Heat source: other | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 6 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 7 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 8 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 9 | Lightning | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 10 | Heat spread from another fire, other | 1 | 2.4% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Sterling departments in 2025. These 7 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $50,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $20,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $15,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $2,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $1,500 | Chimney or flue fire, confined to chimney or flue | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $1,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $1,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Sterling sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 521,563 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 196,722 | 8.7 mi | |
| 2019 | Natural | 167,182 | 14.1 mi | |
| 2007 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 56,254 | 40.7 mi | |
| 2005 | Natural | 26,300 | 29.3 mi | |
| 1996 | Debris and open burning | 17,510 | 33.3 mi | |
| 2009 | Natural | 13,221 | 14.5 mi | |
| 2005 | Natural | 10,131 | 13.4 mi | |
| 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 8,876 | 6.7 mi | |
| 2004 | Recreation and ceremony | 8,600 | 31.4 mi | |
| 1996 | Smoking | 5,200 | 21.0 mi | |
| 1994 | Recreation and ceremony | 2,800 | 28.1 mi | |
| 2007 | Natural | 1,960 | 16.1 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 | 99672 | 202 |
Six Alaska cities with population within ±25% of Sterling. 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.