In 2025, fire departments serving Benzie County responded to 238 fire and hazmat incidents — including a single $500K property loss.
Power line down lead by count. Top five categories make up about 74% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Oct dips.
1,070 incidents from 2021 through 2025.
| Year | Incidents | |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 238 | |
| 2022 | 236 | |
| 2023 | 178 | |
| 2024 | 180 | |
| 2025 | 238 |
For the 23 building fires departments responded to in 2025, here's how investigators classified them.
Largest single-incident property losses in Benzie County during 2025. These 9 fires alone account for 100% of the county's total.
| # | Property loss | City | Type | Severity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $500,000 | Frankfort | Building fires | Major |
| 2 | $50,000 | THOMPSONVILLE | Building fires | Significant |
| 3 | $15,000 | THOMPSONVILLE | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant |
| 4 | $10,000 | THOMPSONVILLE | Mobile property (vehicle) fire, other | Significant |
| 5 | $5,000 | Lake Ann | Building fires | Significant |
| 6 | $3,000 | THOMPSONVILLE | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant |
| 7 | $2,500 | THOMPSONVILLE | Mobile property (vehicle) fire, other | Significant |
| 8 | $1,000 | THOMPSONVILLE | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant |
| 9 | $500 | Frankfort | Arcing, shorted electrical equipment | Significant |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples.
12 cities mapped to FIPS 26019.
| City | Population | |
|---|---|---|
| Frankfort | 1,104 | View › |
| Benzonia | 679 | View › |
| Hardwood Acres | 561 | View › |
| Thompsonville | 452 | View › |
| Lake Ann | 423 | View › |
| Bendon | 296 | View › |
| Elberta | 225 | View › |
| Beulah | 200 | View › |
| Maple Grove | 165 | View › |
| Honor | 149 | View › |
| Crystal Mountain | 130 | View › |
| Nessen City | 90 | View › |
7 departments report from this county.
Top 10 fire perimeters by acres burned (state-scoped fallback while we build out per-county polygons).
| # | Name | Year | Agency | Acres |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Brittle | 2021 | USFS | 5,666 |
| 2 | 21-SLBE Lasso Loop burn | 2021 | NPS | 577 |
| 3 | 21-SLBE Peterson | 2021 | NPS | 512 |
| 4 | 21-SLBE Otter Creek burn | 2021 | NPS | 506 |
| 5 | Horn | 2021 | NPS | 485 |
| 6 | Unhappy Camper | 2015 | USFS | 471 |
| 7 | 21-SLBE Bass Lake burn | 2021 | NPS | 405 |
| 8 | Good Harbor Trail RX | 2023 | NPS | 342 |
| 9 | Summit Lake | 2024 | USFS | 327 |
| 10 | MISNR-FY19-RX-Red Pine Natural Area | 2019 | FWS | 172 |
County-level NFIRS aggregates for 2025, plus 5-year totals across 2021–2025. NFIRS is voluntary — about 23,000 of roughly 30,000 US fire departments report — so totals are a strong indicator, not a complete census. Wildfire risk score (0–100) and Expected Annual Loss come from FEMA's National Risk Index. Drought class is the most recent USDM classification (D0 = abnormally dry through D4 = exceptional drought). Historical fire perimeters are sourced from the NIFC InterAgency Fire Perimeter History.