In 2025, fire departments serving Chase City responded to 84 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $140K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Vehicle accident, general cleanup lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 67% of all calls.
Jan peaks. May dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
477 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2022. $1.0M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 110 | — | |
| 2022 | 122 | +10.9% | |
| 2023 | 75 | -38.5% | |
| 2024 | 86 | +14.7% | |
| 2025 | 84 | -2.3% |
For the 14 building fires Chase City departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 88 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 | 32 | 36.4% | |
| 2 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 10 | 11.4% | |
| 3 | Outside area, other | 10 | 11.4% | |
| 4 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 9 | 10.2% | |
| 5 | Cooking area, kitchen | 5 | 5.7% | |
| 6 | Substructure area or space, crawl space | 3 | 3.4% | |
| 7 | Bedroom - < 5 persons; included are jail or prison | 2 | 2.3% | |
| 8 | Storage area, other | 2 | 2.3% | |
| 9 | Equipment or service area, other | 2 | 2.3% | |
| 10 | Wall surface: exterior | 2 | 2.3% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 11 | 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 Chase City mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 44 | 50.0% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 10 | 11.4% | |
| 3 | Hot ember or ash | 8 | 9.1% | |
| 4 | Arcing | 7 | 8.0% | |
| 5 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 3 | 3.4% | |
| 6 | Heat source: other | 2 | 2.3% | |
| 7 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 2 | 2.3% | |
| 8 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 2 | 2.3% | |
| 9 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 2 | 2.3% | |
| 10 | Flying brand, ember, spark | 2 | 2.3% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 6 | 6.8% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Chase City departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $140,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $100,000 | Outside equipment fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $25,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $18,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $5,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $5,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $4,500 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $2,000 | Mobile property (vehicle) fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Chase City sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 12,120 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,030 | 36.3 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2,012 | 49.4 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,778 | 44.4 mi | |
| 2008 | Equipment and vehicle use | 1,250 | 44.9 mi | |
| 2001 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 865 | 23.9 mi | |
| 2011 | Debris and open burning | 545 | 44.6 mi | |
| 2001 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 456 | 30.0 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 274 | 45.6 mi | |
| 2001 | Debris and open burning | 260 | 45.0 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 257 | 45.7 mi | |
| 2001 | Debris and open burning | 254 | 47.2 mi | |
| 2008 | Equipment and vehicle use | 223 | 39.9 mi |
Top 5 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six Virginia cities with population within ±25% of Chase 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.