In 2025, fire departments serving Jefferson County responded to 245 fire and hazmat incidents — including a single $250K property loss. FEMA NRI rates wildfire risk here as High.
Grass fire lead by count. Top five categories make up about 65% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Dec dips.
1,274 incidents from 2021 through 2025.
| Year | Incidents | |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 236 | |
| 2022 | 271 | |
| 2023 | 247 | |
| 2024 | 275 | |
| 2025 | 245 |
For the 36 building fires departments responded to in 2025, here's how investigators classified them.
Largest single-incident property losses in Jefferson County during 2025. These 10 fires alone account for 93% of the county's total.
| # | Property loss | City | Type | Severity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $250,000 | Oskaloosa | Building fires | Major |
| 2 | $199,000 | Valley Falls | Building fires | Significant |
| 3 | $150,000 | Valley Falls | Fires in structures other than in a building | Significant |
| 4 | $100,000 | Valley Falls | Off-road vehicle or heavy equipment fire | Significant |
| 5 | $80,000 | Meriden | Mobile property (vehicle) fire, other | Significant |
| 6 | $75,000 | Valley Falls | Off-road vehicle or heavy equipment fire | Significant |
| 7 | $50,000 | Valley Falls | Off-road vehicle or heavy equipment fire | Significant |
| 8 | $25,000 | VALLEY FALLS | Fires in structures other than in a building | Significant |
| 9 | $20,000 | nORTONVILLE | Off-road vehicle or heavy equipment fire | Significant |
| 10 | $20,000 | Valley Falls | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples.
12 cities mapped to FIPS 20087.
| City | Population | |
|---|---|---|
| Valley Falls | 1,192 | View › |
| Perry | 1,169 | View › |
| Oskaloosa | 1,138 | View › |
| McLouth | 1,023 | View › |
| Nortonville | 794 | View › |
| Meriden | 719 | View › |
| Ozawkie | 666 | View › |
| Winchester | 385 | View › |
| Grantville | 220 | View › |
| Williamstown | 160 | View › |
| Dunavant | 0 | View › |
| Boyle | 0 | View › |
13 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.