In 2025, fire departments serving Bidwell responded to 32 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $125K 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 72% of all calls.
Feb peaks. Jun dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
226 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2024. $1.4M cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 29 | — | |
| 2022 | 43 | +48.3% | |
| 2023 | 47 | +9.3% | |
| 2024 | 75 | +59.6% | |
| 2025 | 32 | -57.3% |
For the 10 building fires Bidwell departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 99 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 | 24 | 24.2% | |
| 2 | Undetermined | 23 | 23.2% | |
| 3 | Other | 10 | 10.1% | |
| 4 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 7 | 7.1% | |
| 5 | Cooking area, kitchen | 4 | 4.0% | |
| 6 | Laundry area, wash house (laundry) | 3 | 3.0% | |
| 7 | Wall surface: exterior | 3 | 3.0% | |
| 8 | Vehicle area, other | 3 | 3.0% | |
| 9 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 2 | 2.0% | |
| 10 | Bathroom, checkroom, lavatory, locker room | 2 | 2.0% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 18 | 18.2% |
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 Bidwell mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 43 | 43.4% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 13 | 13.1% | |
| 3 | Arcing | 9 | 9.1% | |
| 4 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 8 | 8.1% | |
| 5 | Heat source: other | 7 | 7.1% | |
| 6 | Heat, spark from friction | 5 | 5.1% | |
| 7 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 3 | 3.0% | |
| 8 | Backfire from internal combustion engine | 2 | 2.0% | |
| 9 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 1.0% | |
| 10 | Hot ember or ash | 1 | 1.0% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 7 | 7.1% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Bidwell departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $125,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $120,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $60,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $50,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $23,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $6,000 | Mobile property (vehicle) fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $4,500 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $3,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Bidwell sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 7,733 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | Debris and open burning | 1,016 | 49.1 mi | |
| 2016 | Debris and open burning | 476 | 39.7 mi | |
| 2002 | Debris and open burning | 450 | 43.5 mi | |
| 2000 | Arson/incendiarism | 448 | 47.1 mi | |
| 2000 | Recreation and ceremony | 400 | 41.5 mi | |
| 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 355 | 40.4 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 310 | 24.7 mi | |
| 2005 | Equipment and vehicle use | 303 | 25.6 mi | |
| 2001 | Arson/incendiarism | 300 | 19.8 mi | |
| 2016 | Debris and open burning | 290 | 41.3 mi | |
| 2011 | Recreation and ceremony | 290 | 41.3 mi | |
| 2013 | Arson/incendiarism | 280 | 34.7 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 Bidwell. 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.