In 2025, fire departments serving Three Oaks responded to 59 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $602K 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 68% of all calls.
Nov peaks. Mar dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
221 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2025. $1.4M cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 44 | — | |
| 2022 | 34 | -22.7% | |
| 2023 | 41 | +20.6% | |
| 2024 | 43 | +4.9% | |
| 2025 | 59 | +37.2% |
For the 12 building fires Three Oaks departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 36 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 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 8 | 22.2% | |
| 2 | Exterior, exposed surface | 4 | 11.1% | |
| 3 | Outside area, other | 4 | 11.1% | |
| 4 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 3 | 8.3% | |
| 5 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 2 | 5.6% | |
| 6 | Cooking area, kitchen | 2 | 5.6% | |
| 7 | Wall assembly | 2 | 5.6% | |
| 8 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 1 | 2.8% | |
| 9 | Laundry area, wash house (laundry) | 1 | 2.8% | |
| 10 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 1 | 2.8% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 8 | 22.2% |
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 Three Oaks mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 10 | 27.8% | |
| 2 | Hot ember or ash | 7 | 19.4% | |
| 3 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 5 | 13.9% | |
| 4 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 2 | 5.6% | |
| 5 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 2 | 5.6% | |
| 6 | Arcing | 2 | 5.6% | |
| 7 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 2 | 5.6% | |
| 8 | Heat, spark from friction | 2 | 5.6% | |
| 9 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 1 | 2.8% | |
| 10 | Cigarette | 1 | 2.8% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 2 | 5.6% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Three Oaks departments in 2025. These 7 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $602,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $170,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $10,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $3,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $2,000 | Fire in motor home, camper, recreational vehicle | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $200 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $150 | Arcing, shorted electrical equipment | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Three Oaks sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 4,590 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 396 | 37.0 mi | |
| 1993 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 341 | 36.9 mi | |
| 2012 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 291 | 37.6 mi | |
| 2019 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 274 | 35.6 mi | |
| 1995 | Debris and open burning | 253 | 38.5 mi | |
| 1996 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 244 | 37.1 mi | |
| 2019 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 216 | 36.9 mi | |
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 204 | 38.1 mi | |
| 1994 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 191 | 36.6 mi | |
| 1994 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 190 | 38.6 mi | |
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 187 | 37.7 mi | |
| 2016 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 182 | 34.5 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 Michigan cities with population within ±25% of Three Oaks. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Three Oaks.
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.