In 2025, fire departments serving Boonville responded to 58 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $75K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Hazardous condition, other lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 67% of all calls.
Jan peaks. Aug dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
393 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2024. $464K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 82 | — | |
| 2022 | 91 | +11.0% | |
| 2023 | 69 | -24.2% | |
| 2024 | 93 | +34.8% | |
| 2025 | 58 | -37.6% |
For the 4 building fires Boonville departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 93 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 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 23 | 24.7% | |
| 2 | Outside area, other | 12 | 12.9% | |
| 3 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 10 | 10.8% | |
| 4 | Fuel tank, fuel line | 10 | 10.8% | |
| 5 | Wildland, woods | 9 | 9.7% | |
| 6 | Undetermined | 7 | 7.5% | |
| 7 | Cooking area, kitchen | 5 | 5.4% | |
| 8 | Storage area, other | 2 | 2.2% | |
| 9 | Vehicle area, other | 2 | 2.2% | |
| 10 | Exterior, exposed surface | 2 | 2.2% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 11 | 11.8% |
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 Boonville mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 35 | 37.6% | |
| 2 | Flying brand, ember, spark | 15 | 16.1% | |
| 3 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 5 | 5.4% | |
| 4 | Cigarette lighter | 5 | 5.4% | |
| 5 | Arcing | 4 | 4.3% | |
| 6 | Hot ember or ash | 4 | 4.3% | |
| 7 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 4 | 4.3% | |
| 8 | Heat from direct flame, convection currents | 4 | 4.3% | |
| 9 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 2 | 2.2% | |
| 10 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 2 | 2.2% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 13 | 14.0% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Boonville departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 99% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $75,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $38,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $35,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $18,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $7,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $6,500 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $5,500 | Fire in mobile home used as fixed residence | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $5,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Boonville sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 14,004 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Natural | 3,696 | 43.8 mi | |
| 2013 | Smoking | 1,509 | 46.7 mi | |
| 2016 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,450 | 48.6 mi | |
| 1999 | Debris and open burning | 800 | 38.1 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 737 | 23.5 mi | |
| 2000 | Arson/incendiarism | 730 | 23.8 mi | |
| 2012 | Debris and open burning | 675 | 14.6 mi | |
| 2006 | Debris and open burning | 484 | 18.0 mi | |
| 2009 | Debris and open burning | 457 | 49.2 mi | |
| 2016 | Other causes | 430 | 44.8 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 363 | 22.0 mi | |
| 2000 | Natural | 310 | 26.2 mi |
Top 6 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six North Carolina cities with population within ±25% of Boonville. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Boonville.
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.