In 2025, fire departments serving Central City responded to 13 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $30K 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 100% of all calls.
Sep peaks. Feb dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
39 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023. $190K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021* | 0 | — | |
| 2022* | 3 | — | |
| 2023 | 13 | — | |
| 2024 | 10 | -23.1% | |
| 2025 | 13 | +30.0% |
* Well below Central City's usual volume. That almost always means one or more departments didn't submit a full year to NFIRS, not that fires dropped, so no year-over-year change is shown for it.
For the 8 building fires Central City departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 16 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 | 4 | 25.0% | |
| 2 | Outside area, other | 2 | 12.5% | |
| 3 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 1 | 6.2% | |
| 4 | Dining room, cafeteria bar area, beverage service | 1 | 6.2% | |
| 5 | Cooking area, kitchen | 1 | 6.2% | |
| 6 | Storage area, other | 1 | 6.2% | |
| 7 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 1 | 6.2% | |
| 8 | Equipment or service area, other | 1 | 6.2% | |
| 9 | Ceiling & floor assembly, crawl space b/t stories | 1 | 6.2% | |
| 10 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 1 | 6.2% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 2 | 12.5% |
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 Central City mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 7 | 43.8% | |
| 2 | Arcing | 3 | 18.8% | |
| 3 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 6.2% | |
| 4 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 1 | 6.2% | |
| 5 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 1 | 6.2% | |
| 6 | Heat, spark from friction | 1 | 6.2% | |
| 7 | Hot ember or ash | 1 | 6.2% | |
| 8 | Flying brand, ember, spark | 1 | 6.2% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Central City departments in 2025. These 7 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $30,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $15,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $10,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $10,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $8,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $5,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $2,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Central City sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 1,349 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 225 | 34.6 mi | |
| 2005 | Debris and open burning | 160 | 37.9 mi | |
| 2004 | Debris and open burning | 150 | 36.5 mi | |
| 2013 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 80 | 7.7 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 80 | 33.0 mi | |
| 2014 | Debris and open burning | 80 | 36.3 mi | |
| 2014 | Debris and open burning | 80 | 42.4 mi | |
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 70 | 44.0 mi | |
| 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 60 | 27.1 mi | |
| 2003 | Debris and open burning | 50 | 46.7 mi | |
| 2014 | Debris and open burning | 35 | 32.6 mi | |
| 2014 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 35 | 23.1 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 Illinois cities with population within ±25% of Central City. 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.