In 2025, fire departments serving Chatham responded to 127 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $230K 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 56% of all calls.
Feb peaks. May dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
707 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2021. $2.5M cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 176 | — | |
| 2022 | 116 | -34.1% | |
| 2023 | 170 | +46.6% | |
| 2024 | 118 | -30.6% | |
| 2025 | 127 | +7.6% |
For the 28 building fires Chatham departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 161 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 | 69 | 42.9% | |
| 2 | Other | 11 | 6.8% | |
| 3 | Cooking area, kitchen | 11 | 6.8% | |
| 4 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 11 | 6.8% | |
| 5 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 9 | 5.6% | |
| 6 | Equipment or service area, other | 5 | 3.1% | |
| 7 | Vehicle area, other | 5 | 3.1% | |
| 8 | Outside area, other | 5 | 3.1% | |
| 9 | Storage: supplies or tools; dead storage | 4 | 2.5% | |
| 10 | Function area, other | 3 | 1.9% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 28 | 17.4% |
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 Chatham mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 96 | 59.6% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 11 | 6.8% | |
| 3 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 11 | 6.8% | |
| 4 | Heat source: other | 8 | 5.0% | |
| 5 | Arcing | 6 | 3.7% | |
| 6 | Hot ember or ash | 5 | 3.1% | |
| 7 | Match | 4 | 2.5% | |
| 8 | Flying brand, ember, spark | 4 | 2.5% | |
| 9 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 3 | 1.9% | |
| 10 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 2 | 1.2% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 11 | 6.8% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Chatham departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 97% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $230,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $212,400 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $40,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $40,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $24,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $15,000 | Off-road vehicle or heavy equipment fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $10,000 | Outside rubbish fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $8,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Chatham sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 17,751 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 3,990 | 49.1 mi | |
| 2006 | Natural | 3,696 | 45.2 mi | |
| 2008 | Equipment and vehicle use | 1,550 | 45.8 mi | |
| 2002 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,146 | 41.7 mi | |
| 2006 | Debris and open burning | 1,140 | 48.2 mi | |
| 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1,036 | 16.2 mi | |
| 2006 | Power generation/transmission/distribution | 850 | 42.7 mi | |
| 2001 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 456 | 44.7 mi | |
| 2002 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 400 | 46.6 mi | |
| 1999 | Natural | 400 | 16.2 mi | |
| 2006 | Natural | 380 | 15.9 mi | |
| 2009 | Debris and open burning | 370 | 49.0 mi |
Top 7 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 Chatham. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
2 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Chatham.
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.