In 2025, fire departments serving China Grove responded to 18 fire and hazmat incidents . Here's the full picture.
Incomplete 2025 data. China Grove's departments reported 18 incidents to NFIRS for 2025, against about 84 in a typical year, so 2025 figures on this page undercount. The 2021–2025 totals are the better guide.
Building fires lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 89% of all calls.
Mar peaks. May dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
418 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2023. $100.4M cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 94 | — | |
| 2022 | 69 | -26.6% | |
| 2023 | 164 | +137.7% | |
| 2024 | 73 | -55.5% | |
| 2025* | 18 | — |
* Well below China Grove'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 China Grove departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 24 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 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 5 | 20.8% | |
| 2 | Cooking area, kitchen | 4 | 16.7% | |
| 3 | Undetermined | 3 | 12.5% | |
| 4 | Wall surface: exterior | 2 | 8.3% | |
| 5 | Outside area, other | 2 | 8.3% | |
| 6 | Other | 1 | 4.2% | |
| 7 | Common room, den, family room, living room, lounge | 1 | 4.2% | |
| 8 | Storage: supplies or tools; dead storage | 1 | 4.2% | |
| 9 | Duct: hvac, cable, exhaust, heating, or AC | 1 | 4.2% | |
| 10 | Machinery room or area; elevator machinery room | 1 | 4.2% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 3 | 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 China Grove mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 6 | 25.0% | |
| 2 | Undetermined | 5 | 20.8% | |
| 3 | Radiated, conducted heat from operating equipment | 3 | 12.5% | |
| 4 | Heat source: other | 2 | 8.3% | |
| 5 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 2 | 8.3% | |
| 6 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 1 | 4.2% | |
| 7 | Hot ember or ash | 1 | 4.2% | |
| 8 | Candle | 1 | 4.2% | |
| 9 | Backfire from internal combustion engine | 1 | 4.2% | |
| 10 | Lightning | 1 | 4.2% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 1 | 4.2% |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. China Grove sits below the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 25 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 2,751 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1993 | Misuse of fire by a minor | 250 | 44.7 mi | |
| 1996 | Equipment and vehicle use | 214 | 27.7 mi | |
| 1993 | Natural | 200 | 44.3 mi | |
| 2013 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 150 | 36.8 mi | |
| 2018 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 150 | 29.4 mi | |
| 1996 | Debris and open burning | 120 | 45.0 mi | |
| 2005 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 116 | 48.6 mi | |
| 1996 | Misuse of fire by a minor | 115 | 44.1 mi | |
| 2007 | Recreation and ceremony | 107 | 32.5 mi | |
| 1995 | Equipment and vehicle use | 101 | 29.7 mi | |
| 1994 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 100 | 49.2 mi | |
| 2002 | Natural | 100 | 46.8 mi |
Top 3 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six North Carolina cities with population within ±25% of China Grove. 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.