In 2025, fire departments serving University Place responded to 121 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $83K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Electrical wiring/equipment problem, other lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 48% of all calls.
Jul peaks. Mar dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
564 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2024. $2.9M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 107 | — | |
| 2022 | 113 | +5.6% | |
| 2023 | 97 | -14.2% | |
| 2024 | 126 | +29.9% | |
| 2025 | 121 | -4.0% |
For the 8 building fires University Place departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 128 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 | 40 | 31.2% | |
| 2 | Cooking area, kitchen | 13 | 10.2% | |
| 3 | Other | 10 | 7.8% | |
| 4 | Outside area, other | 10 | 7.8% | |
| 5 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 8 | 6.2% | |
| 6 | Vehicle area, other | 5 | 3.9% | |
| 7 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 4 | 3.1% | |
| 8 | Laundry area, wash house (laundry) | 3 | 2.3% | |
| 9 | Wall assembly | 3 | 2.3% | |
| 10 | Courtyard, patio, porch, terrace | 3 | 2.3% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 29 | 22.7% |
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 University Place mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 74 | 57.8% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 10 | 7.8% | |
| 3 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 8 | 6.2% | |
| 4 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 6 | 4.7% | |
| 5 | Hot ember or ash | 4 | 3.1% | |
| 6 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 3 | 2.3% | |
| 7 | Heat, spark from friction | 3 | 2.3% | |
| 8 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 3 | 2.3% | |
| 9 | Heat source: other | 2 | 1.6% | |
| 10 | Fireworks | 2 | 1.6% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 13 | 10.2% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by University Place departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 97% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $83,482 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $65,480 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $50,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $7,500 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $7,500 | Grass fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $5,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $5,000 | Outside rubbish, trash or waste fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $5,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. University Place sits below the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 12,709 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | Equipment and vehicle use | 3,312 | 37.1 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,243 | 42.2 mi | |
| 2006 | Fireworks | 1,100 | 40.4 mi | |
| 2009 | Natural | 817 | 43.7 mi | |
| 1997 | Debris and open burning | 594 | 25.3 mi | |
| 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 494 | 9.4 mi | |
| 2009 | Natural | 443 | 45.8 mi | |
| 2018 | Natural | 420 | 41.2 mi | |
| 2010 | Natural | 385 | 45.4 mi | |
| 2017 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 384 | 34.5 mi | |
| 2015 | Natural | 359 | 33.6 mi | |
| 2003 | Natural | 310 | 43.1 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 Washington cities with population within ±25% of University Place. 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.