In 2025, fire departments serving Wilton responded to 47 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 72% of all calls.
Feb peaks. Jun dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
201 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2024. $167K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 34 | — | |
| 2022 | 44 | +29.4% | |
| 2023 | 26 | -40.9% | |
| 2024 | 50 | +92.3% | |
| 2025 | 47 | -6.0% |
For the 12 building fires Wilton departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 51 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 | 32 | 62.7% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 4 | 7.8% | |
| 3 | Cooking area, kitchen | 2 | 3.9% | |
| 4 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 2 | 3.9% | |
| 5 | Other | 1 | 2.0% | |
| 6 | Exterior stairway, ramp, or fire escape | 1 | 2.0% | |
| 7 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 1 | 2.0% | |
| 8 | Function area, other | 1 | 2.0% | |
| 9 | Bathroom, checkroom, lavatory, locker room | 1 | 2.0% | |
| 10 | Storage: supplies or tools; dead storage | 1 | 2.0% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 5 | 9.8% |
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 Wilton mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 39 | 76.5% | |
| 2 | Heat source: other | 3 | 5.9% | |
| 3 | Arcing | 3 | 5.9% | |
| 4 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 2 | 3.9% | |
| 5 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 2 | 3.9% | |
| 6 | Heat, spark from friction | 1 | 2.0% | |
| 7 | Explosive, fireworks, other | 1 | 2.0% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Wilton departments in 2025. These 2 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $100,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $66,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Wilton sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 9,011 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Debris and open burning | 1,500 | 23.2 mi | |
| 2003 | Recreation and ceremony | 1,200 | 23.2 mi | |
| 2000 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 832 | 23.2 mi | |
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 820 | 23.2 mi | |
| 2015 | Debris and open burning | 640 | 27.1 mi | |
| 2003 | Arson/incendiarism | 630 | 23.2 mi | |
| 2012 | Debris and open burning | 400 | 16.5 mi | |
| 1996 | Debris and open burning | 333 | 33.0 mi | |
| 2000 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 282 | 23.2 mi | |
| 2000 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 232 | 23.2 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 200 | 22.2 mi | |
| 2015 | Debris and open burning | 195 | 43.2 mi |
Top 1 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
| # | ZIP | 5-yr incidents | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 52778 | 201 |
Six Iowa cities with population within ±25% of Wilton. 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.