In 2025, fire departments serving Cherokee County responded to 321 fire and hazmat incidents — including a single $200K property loss. FEMA NRI rates wildfire risk here as Moderate.
Grass fire lead by count. Top five categories make up about 60% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Sep dips.
1,850 incidents from 2021 through 2025.
| Year | Incidents | |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 302 | |
| 2022 | 493 | |
| 2023 | 346 | |
| 2024 | 388 | |
| 2025 | 321 |
For the 41 building fires departments responded to in 2025, here's how investigators classified them.
Largest single-incident property losses in Cherokee County during 2025. These 10 fires alone account for 84% of the county's total.
| # | Property loss | City | Type | Severity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $200,000 | Columbus | Building fires | Significant |
| 2 | $150,000 | Columbus | Building fires | Significant |
| 3 | $65,000 | Columbus | Building fires | Significant |
| 4 | $60,000 | Baxter Springs | Building fires | Significant |
| 5 | $60,000 | Galena | Building fires | Significant |
| 6 | $50,000 | Baxter Springs | Building fires | Significant |
| 7 | $40,000 | Baxter Springs | Off-road vehicle or heavy equipment fire | Significant |
| 8 | $30,000 | Columbus | Building fires | Significant |
| 9 | $30,000 | Columbus | Building fires | Significant |
| 10 | $25,000 | Baxter Springs | Fire in motor home, camper, recreational vehicle | Significant |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples.
12 cities mapped to FIPS 20021.
8 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 | ANNUAL BUR | 1998 | NPS | 60,039 |
| 2 | Tunner | 2011 | USFS | 19,656 |
| 3 | Boiling Springs | 2021 | PRI | 4,571 |
| 4 | BIG SALT MARSH | 2010 | FWS | 3,697 |
| 5 | Steeler | 2006 | USFS | 2,380 |
| 6 | Greenwood | 2010 | USFS | 2,078 |
| 7 | 15 Two Section East Traps | 2015 | NPS | 2,060 |
| 8 | 21 Big South | 2021 | NPS | 1,954 |
| 9 | Cottonwood | 2018 | FWS | 1,508 |
| 10 | East Kennedy Creek | 2019 | PRI | 1,115 |
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.