In 2025, fire departments serving Butler responded to 32 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $300K 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 81% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Apr dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
196 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023. $1.0M cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 43 | — | |
| 2022 | 37 | -14.0% | |
| 2023 | 49 | +32.4% | |
| 2024 | 35 | -28.6% | |
| 2025 | 32 | -8.6% |
For the 16 building fires Butler departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 39 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 | 15 | 38.5% | |
| 2 | Outside area, other | 4 | 10.3% | |
| 3 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 3 | 7.7% | |
| 4 | Cooking area, kitchen | 2 | 5.1% | |
| 5 | Vehicle area, other | 2 | 5.1% | |
| 6 | Wildland, woods | 2 | 5.1% | |
| 7 | Other | 1 | 2.6% | |
| 8 | Storage room, area, tank, or bin | 1 | 2.6% | |
| 9 | Chute/container - trash, rubbish, waste | 1 | 2.6% | |
| 10 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 1 | 2.6% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 7 | 17.9% |
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 Butler mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 20 | 51.3% | |
| 2 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 4 | 10.3% | |
| 3 | Hot ember or ash | 3 | 7.7% | |
| 4 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 3 | 7.7% | |
| 5 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 1 | 2.6% | |
| 6 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 2.6% | |
| 7 | Arcing | 1 | 2.6% | |
| 8 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 1 | 2.6% | |
| 9 | Cigarette | 1 | 2.6% | |
| 10 | Heat from undetermined smoking material | 1 | 2.6% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 3 | 7.7% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Butler departments in 2025. These 4 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $300,000 | Building fires | Major | Investigated |
| 2 | $200,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $140,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $20,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Butler sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 1,266 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 332 | 44.5 mi | |
| 2015 | Debris and open burning | 171 | 9.2 mi | |
| 2013 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 150 | 31.8 mi | |
| 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 100 | 47.5 mi | |
| 2014 | Debris and open burning | 50 | 36.9 mi | |
| 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 50 | 44.9 mi | |
| 2014 | Debris and open burning | 35 | 31.7 mi | |
| 2005 | Debris and open burning | 30 | 23.3 mi | |
| 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 30 | 29.2 mi | |
| 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 25 | 44.5 mi | |
| 2014 | Debris and open burning | 25 | 31.7 mi | |
| 2016 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 25 | 30.2 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 Butler. 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.