In 2025, fire departments serving Cardington responded to 56 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $400 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 55% of all calls.
Nov peaks. Dec dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
319 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2022. $308K cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 69 | — | |
| 2022 | 78 | +13.0% | |
| 2023 | 63 | -19.2% | |
| 2024 | 53 | -15.9% | |
| 2025 | 56 | +5.7% |
For the 9 building fires Cardington departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 121 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 | 29 | 24.0% | |
| 2 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 15 | 12.4% | |
| 3 | Outside area, other | 12 | 9.9% | |
| 4 | Wildland, woods | 8 | 6.6% | |
| 5 | Cooking area, kitchen | 7 | 5.8% | |
| 6 | Vehicle area, other | 7 | 5.8% | |
| 7 | Other | 6 | 5.0% | |
| 8 | Storage area, other | 5 | 4.1% | |
| 9 | Function area, other | 3 | 2.5% | |
| 10 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 3 | 2.5% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 26 | 21.5% |
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 Cardington mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 53 | 43.8% | |
| 2 | Heat source: other | 9 | 7.4% | |
| 3 | Arcing | 8 | 6.6% | |
| 4 | Flame/torch used for lighting | 8 | 6.6% | |
| 5 | Hot ember or ash | 7 | 5.8% | |
| 6 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 6 | 5.0% | |
| 7 | Match | 6 | 5.0% | |
| 8 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 5 | 4.1% | |
| 9 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 4 | 3.3% | |
| 10 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 3 | 2.5% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 12 | 9.9% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Cardington departments in 2025. These 1 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $400 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Cardington sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 22 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 1,055 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 | 22.2 mi | |
| 2015 | Debris and open burning | 171 | 33.3 mi | |
| 2013 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 150 | 50.0 mi | |
| 2014 | Debris and open burning | 50 | 49.7 mi | |
| 2014 | Debris and open burning | 35 | 49.3 mi | |
| 2005 | Debris and open burning | 30 | 45.8 mi | |
| 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 30 | 47.7 mi | |
| 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 25 | 41.9 mi | |
| 2014 | Debris and open burning | 25 | 49.5 mi | |
| 2016 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 25 | 46.8 mi | |
| 2012 | Debris and open burning | 24 | 48.1 mi | |
| 2019 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 20 | 41.4 mi |
Top 2 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 Cardington. 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.