In 2025, fire departments serving Vashon responded to 81 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $500K 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 53% of all calls.
Jul peaks. Dec dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
449 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2021. $3.1M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 105 | — | |
| 2022 | 73 | -30.5% | |
| 2023 | 85 | +16.4% | |
| 2024 | 105 | +23.5% | |
| 2025 | 81 | -22.9% |
For the 2 building fires Vashon departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 69 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 | 15 | 21.7% | |
| 2 | Other | 10 | 14.5% | |
| 3 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 5 | 7.2% | |
| 4 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 5 | 7.2% | |
| 5 | Cooking area, kitchen | 4 | 5.8% | |
| 6 | Storage area, other | 4 | 5.8% | |
| 7 | Outside area, other | 4 | 5.8% | |
| 8 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 3 | 4.3% | |
| 9 | Laundry area, wash house (laundry) | 2 | 2.9% | |
| 10 | Wall surface: exterior | 2 | 2.9% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 15 | 21.7% |
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 Vashon mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 27 | 39.1% | |
| 2 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 11 | 15.9% | |
| 3 | Hot ember or ash | 7 | 10.1% | |
| 4 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 6 | 8.7% | |
| 5 | Arcing | 6 | 8.7% | |
| 6 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 3 | 4.3% | |
| 7 | Heat source: other | 2 | 2.9% | |
| 8 | Cigarette lighter | 2 | 2.9% | |
| 9 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 1.4% | |
| 10 | Molten, hot material | 1 | 1.4% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 3 | 4.3% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Vashon departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 99% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $500,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $50,000 | Fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $30,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $5,000 | Camper or recreational vehicle (RV) fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $5,000 | Trash or rubbish fire, contained | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $2,000 | Camper or recreational vehicle (RV) fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $1,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $1,000 | Fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Vashon sits below the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 13,099 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 | 32.7 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,243 | 35.5 mi | |
| 2006 | Fireworks | 1,100 | 39.0 mi | |
| 2009 | Natural | 817 | 37.7 mi | |
| 1997 | Debris and open burning | 594 | 29.1 mi | |
| 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 494 | 15.4 mi | |
| 2009 | Natural | 443 | 38.6 mi | |
| 2018 | Natural | 420 | 44.4 mi | |
| 2010 | Natural | 385 | 41.6 mi | |
| 2017 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 384 | 47.6 mi | |
| 2017 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 360 | 44.8 mi | |
| 2015 | Natural | 359 | 45.8 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 Vashon. 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.