In 2025, fire departments serving Apple Creek responded to 37 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $50K 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 78% of all calls.
Sep peaks. Jun dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
222 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023. $423K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 48 | — | |
| 2022 | 39 | -18.8% | |
| 2023 | 58 | +48.7% | |
| 2024 | 40 | -31.0% | |
| 2025 | 37 | -7.5% |
For the 11 building fires Apple Creek departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 74 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 | 26 | 35.1% | |
| 2 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 15 | 20.3% | |
| 3 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 6 | 8.1% | |
| 4 | Duct: hvac, cable, exhaust, heating, or AC | 4 | 5.4% | |
| 5 | Other | 3 | 4.1% | |
| 6 | Cooking area, kitchen | 3 | 4.1% | |
| 7 | Outside area, other | 3 | 4.1% | |
| 8 | Structural area, other | 2 | 2.7% | |
| 9 | Vehicle area, other | 2 | 2.7% | |
| 10 | Highway, parking lot, street: on or near | 2 | 2.7% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 8 | 10.8% |
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 Apple Creek mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 27 | 36.5% | |
| 2 | Hot ember or ash | 7 | 9.5% | |
| 3 | Match | 7 | 9.5% | |
| 4 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 6 | 8.1% | |
| 5 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 5 | 6.8% | |
| 6 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 4 | 5.4% | |
| 7 | Heat source: other | 2 | 2.7% | |
| 8 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 2 | 2.7% | |
| 9 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 2 | 2.7% | |
| 10 | Heat, spark from friction | 2 | 2.7% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 10 | 13.5% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Apple Creek departments in 2025. These 3 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $50,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $30,000 | Fires in structures other than in a building | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $1,500 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Apple Creek sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 1,251 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 175 | 35.3 mi | |
| 2015 | Debris and open burning | 171 | 25.5 mi | |
| 2013 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 150 | 34.7 mi | |
| 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 100 | 37.2 mi | |
| 2013 | Recreation and ceremony | 75 | 48.3 mi | |
| 2014 | Debris and open burning | 60 | 33.7 mi | |
| 2014 | Debris and open burning | 50 | 45.6 mi | |
| 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 50 | 35.9 mi | |
| 2014 | Debris and open burning | 35 | 35.8 mi | |
| 2015 | Arson/incendiarism | 35 | 45.7 mi | |
| 2005 | Debris and open burning | 30 | 23.8 mi | |
| 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 30 | 33.4 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 | 44606 | 222 |
Six Ohio cities with population within ±25% of Apple Creek. 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.