In 2025, fire departments serving Barnesville responded to 38 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $120K 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 68% of all calls.
Jan peaks. Sep dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
304 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2021. $852K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 112 | — | |
| 2022 | 59 | -47.3% | |
| 2023 | 38 | -35.6% | |
| 2024 | 57 | +50.0% | |
| 2025 | 38 | -33.3% |
For the 7 building fires Barnesville departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 55 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 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 16 | 29.1% | |
| 2 | Undetermined | 13 | 23.6% | |
| 3 | Operator/passenger area of transportation equip. | 4 | 7.3% | |
| 4 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 4 | 7.3% | |
| 5 | Cooking area, kitchen | 3 | 5.5% | |
| 6 | Outside area, other | 3 | 5.5% | |
| 7 | Attic: vacant, crawl space above top story, cupola | 2 | 3.6% | |
| 8 | Other | 1 | 1.8% | |
| 9 | Bathroom, checkroom, lavatory, locker room | 1 | 1.8% | |
| 10 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 1 | 1.8% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 7 | 12.7% |
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 Barnesville mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 28 | 50.9% | |
| 2 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 4 | 7.3% | |
| 3 | Arcing | 3 | 5.5% | |
| 4 | Match | 3 | 5.5% | |
| 5 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 2 | 3.6% | |
| 6 | Heat, spark from friction | 2 | 3.6% | |
| 7 | Cigarette | 2 | 3.6% | |
| 8 | Flying brand, ember, spark | 2 | 3.6% | |
| 9 | Heat source: other | 1 | 1.8% | |
| 10 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 1 | 1.8% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 7 | 12.7% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Barnesville departments in 2025. These 6 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $120,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $80,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $20,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $8,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $5,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $2,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Barnesville sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 1,663 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 | 41.3 mi | |
| 2013 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 150 | 47.4 mi | |
| 2012 | Equipment and vehicle use | 147 | 44.2 mi | |
| 2019 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 100 | 7.4 mi | |
| 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 100 | 30.3 mi | |
| 2013 | Recreation and ceremony | 75 | 26.8 mi | |
| 1999 | Power generation/transmission/distribution | 71 | 47.0 mi | |
| 2014 | Equipment and vehicle use | 70 | 45.5 mi | |
| 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 60 | 24.5 mi | |
| 2014 | Debris and open burning | 60 | 42.4 mi | |
| 2001 | Arson/incendiarism | 55 | 33.8 mi | |
| 2015 | Arson/incendiarism | 50 | 49.5 mi |
Top 3 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six Ohio cities with population within ±25% of Barnesville. 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.