In 2025, fire departments serving Tribune responded to 13 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $70K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Passenger vehicle fire lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 92% of all calls.
Mar peaks. May dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
66 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2021. $202K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 19 | — | |
| 2022 | 16 | -15.8% | |
| 2023 | 10 | -37.5% | |
| 2024 | 8 | -20.0% | |
| 2025 | 13 | +62.5% |
For the 0 building fires Tribune departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 56 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 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 16 | 28.6% | |
| 2 | Outside area, other | 14 | 25.0% | |
| 3 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 7 | 12.5% | |
| 4 | Storage area, other | 4 | 7.1% | |
| 5 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 2 | 3.6% | |
| 6 | Vehicle area, other | 2 | 3.6% | |
| 7 | Operator/passenger area of transportation equip. | 2 | 3.6% | |
| 8 | Function area, other | 1 | 1.8% | |
| 9 | Cooking area, kitchen | 1 | 1.8% | |
| 10 | Laundry area, wash house (laundry) | 1 | 1.8% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 6 | 10.7% |
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 Tribune mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 8 | 14.3% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 6 | 10.7% | |
| 3 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 6 | 10.7% | |
| 4 | Arcing | 6 | 10.7% | |
| 5 | Chemical reaction | 6 | 10.7% | |
| 6 | Fireworks | 3 | 5.4% | |
| 7 | Lightning | 3 | 5.4% | |
| 8 | Heat source: other | 2 | 3.6% | |
| 9 | Heat, spark from friction | 2 | 3.6% | |
| 10 | Hot ember or ash | 2 | 3.6% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 12 | 21.4% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Tribune departments in 2025. These 5 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $70,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $70,000 | Off-road vehicle or heavy equipment fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $25,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $22,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $15,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Tribune sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 32,812 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 8,000 | 39.0 mi | |
| 2019 | Natural | 4,521 | 43.8 mi | |
| 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 3,500 | 48.5 mi | |
| 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,800 | 28.9 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,500 | 44.4 mi | |
| 2005 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,500 | 45.8 mi | |
| 2012 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,200 | 29.7 mi | |
| 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,199 | 39.1 mi | |
| 2007 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,132 | 45.8 mi | |
| 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,107 | 31.1 mi | |
| 2007 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,000 | 45.1 mi | |
| 2016 | Debris and open burning | 1,000 | 32.9 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 Kansas cities with population within ±25% of Tribune. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Tribune.
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.