In 2025, fire departments serving Sunset responded to 31 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $100K 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 74% of all calls.
Aug peaks. Jan dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
157 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2022. $1.3M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 30 | — | |
| 2022 | 35 | +16.7% | |
| 2023 | 29 | -17.1% | |
| 2024 | 32 | +10.3% | |
| 2025 | 31 | -3.1% |
For the 10 building fires Sunset departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 42 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 | Outside area, other | 8 | 19.0% | |
| 2 | Undetermined | 6 | 14.3% | |
| 3 | Other | 3 | 7.1% | |
| 4 | Cooking area, kitchen | 3 | 7.1% | |
| 5 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 3 | 7.1% | |
| 6 | Storage area, other | 2 | 4.8% | |
| 7 | Railroad right of way: on or near | 2 | 4.8% | |
| 8 | Courtyard, patio, porch, terrace | 2 | 4.8% | |
| 9 | Interior stairway or ramp | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 10 | Egress/exit, other | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 11 | 26.2% |
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 Sunset mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 14 | 33.3% | |
| 2 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 5 | 11.9% | |
| 3 | Heat source: other | 4 | 9.5% | |
| 4 | Fireworks | 4 | 9.5% | |
| 5 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 2 | 4.8% | |
| 6 | Cigarette | 2 | 4.8% | |
| 7 | Heat from undetermined smoking material | 2 | 4.8% | |
| 8 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 2 | 4.8% | |
| 9 | Arcing | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 10 | Heat, spark from friction | 1 | 2.4% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 5 | 11.9% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Sunset departments in 2025. These 6 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $100,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $20,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $1,200 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $1,000 | Grass fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $100 | Trash or rubbish fire, contained | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $20 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Sunset sits below the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 280,571 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Natural | 44,345 | 49.3 mi | |
| 2001 | Natural | 40,000 | 36.8 mi | |
| 2007 | Natural | 24,594 | 44.7 mi | |
| 2011 | Firearms and explosives use | 16,267 | 44.2 mi | |
| 2000 | Natural | 16,116 | 35.5 mi | |
| 2016 | Natural | 15,330 | 16.8 mi | |
| 2007 | Natural | 14,293 | 43.2 mi | |
| 1994 | Natural | 10,500 | 48.0 mi | |
| 2018 | Firearms and explosives use | 9,880 | 42.4 mi | |
| 2001 | Arson/incendiarism | 9,000 | 49.4 mi | |
| 2017 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 9,000 | 44.2 mi | |
| 2020 | Firearms and explosives use | 6,848 | 35.3 mi |
Top 2 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six Utah cities with population within ±25% of Sunset. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Sunset.
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.