In 2025, fire departments serving Chesaning responded to 129 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $120K 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 69% of all calls.
Mar peaks. Aug dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
547 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2024. $3.4M cumulative property loss. 1 civilian deaths.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 98 | — | |
| 2022 | 72 | -26.5% | |
| 2023 | 113 | +56.9% | |
| 2024 | 135 | +19.5% | |
| 2025 | 129 | -4.4% |
For the 39 building fires Chesaning departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 105 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 | 16 | 15.2% | |
| 2 | Outside area, other | 11 | 10.5% | |
| 3 | Open area - outside; included are farmland, field | 11 | 10.5% | |
| 4 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 10 | 9.5% | |
| 5 | Wall surface: exterior | 9 | 8.6% | |
| 6 | Exterior, exposed surface | 6 | 5.7% | |
| 7 | Vehicle storage area; garage, carport | 4 | 3.8% | |
| 8 | Other | 3 | 2.9% | |
| 9 | Function area, other | 3 | 2.9% | |
| 10 | Vehicle area, other | 3 | 2.9% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 29 | 27.6% |
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 Chesaning mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 48 | 45.7% | |
| 2 | Heat from direct flame, convection currents | 8 | 7.6% | |
| 3 | Arcing | 7 | 6.7% | |
| 4 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 5 | 4.8% | |
| 5 | Hot ember or ash | 5 | 4.8% | |
| 6 | Cigarette | 5 | 4.8% | |
| 7 | Heat spread from another fire, other | 5 | 4.8% | |
| 8 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 4 | 3.8% | |
| 9 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 3 | 2.9% | |
| 10 | Radiated heat from another fire | 3 | 2.9% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 12 | 11.4% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Chesaning departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 86% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $120,000 | Road freight or transport vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $70,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $70,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $50,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $45,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $30,000 | Forest, woods or wildland fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $20,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $15,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Chesaning sits above the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 2,327 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | Arson/incendiarism | 335 | 35.1 mi | |
| 2003 | Debris and open burning | 191 | 42.3 mi | |
| 2004 | Natural | 186 | 43.9 mi | |
| 2003 | Recreation and ceremony | 155 | 40.3 mi | |
| 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 143 | 34.5 mi | |
| 1996 | Arson/incendiarism | 142 | 46.8 mi | |
| 2018 | Equipment and vehicle use | 100 | 42.4 mi | |
| 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 92 | 40.7 mi | |
| 1996 | Debris and open burning | 80 | 26.3 mi | |
| 2003 | Equipment and vehicle use | 70 | 36.5 mi | |
| 1994 | Arson/incendiarism | 70 | 45.6 mi | |
| 2004 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 67 | 39.3 mi |
Top 8 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six Michigan cities with population within ±25% of Chesaning. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Chesaning.
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.